Here is the next chapter. I am working on the next one right now so I am hoping to have it up soon. Happy New Year everyone and thanks so much for sticking with me even when it takes me forever to post. Please let me know what you guys think of the story so far. I love getting to hear from my readers. Enjoy!
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The small fleet of boats ripped across the water propelled by wind magic. Damien smirked as the his three prisoners rocked in the boat. It would be so easy to simply throw one over board to try and get the others to talk, but he had nearly drowned before and that was no way for someone to die. Besides, he might kill in combat, but these men were his prisoners, killing them was simply wrong.
"Alright boys, who wants to tell me about the Urn of Sacred Ashes, Andraste's resting place?" Damien asked crossing his arms. The three men did not even budge or make a sound. "No body? Really? Now that is just a shame, because all I want is to take a small pinch of those ashes to make sure a friend of mine is cured. If you help me do that, then you're a friend. If not, well, then you're my enemy and I have to remove you from my presence."
Damien watched for their reactions but nothing seemed to phase these men. He started thinking back through everything that was said during the fight an everything he saw. The armor they had been wearing was not very well put together, but the shoulder guard on every set had what looked like a scale, perhaps from a drake, or even a dragon. Then there was the fact that they had been called heretics. This had to be a cult of some kind, but what did the urn, dragon scales, and a religious cult have in common? Who cared? If this was a cult and these men were devout followers, they would not be swayed with the threat of torture, and torture itself only got the fastest lie to make the pain stop. Maybe he could let one of them escape and follow them home, but what if they turned around and attacked them again or killed themselves to keep their secrets. Damn it, he needed to find a way to get the information from them.
"Fine, then at least tell me this, why are you killing people who are looking for the urn? It is the holiest of all Sacred artifacts for us Andrastians. Searching for it wouldn't make us heretics," Damien said sitting down on the side of the boat opposite them.
Still nothing, he couldn't get them to make a peep. This meant drastic measures.
"I really didn't want to resort to this, but you asked for it. Leliana, in your training as a bard, they never taught you about truth potions, did they?" Damien asked turning to look at the red head sitting near the bow.
"Of course, but it was difficult getting someone to swallow one," Leliana replied.
"Do you think you could wipe something up to make our friends a little more complaint?" Damien asked.
"Sure, but a word of warning. The use of truth potions was frowned on because of their adverse effects on the mental state of the subject. Once the potion wore off, many of the people who took it made mental problems. Some couldn't remember certain things while others were permanently damaged beyond repair," Leliana stated grabbing her bag and rummaging through.
Damien had never heard of truth potions having such adverse effects. Maybe the threat of being lost in their own mind would make one of their captives more compliant.
"I'll risk it. What about you three? Are you willing to risk loosing your sanity and giving me what I want anyway rather than just giving me the answers I've asked so nicely for?" Damien said looking between the three.
Yet again, no reaction.
"Alright, you know what. While Leliana is wiping up your chatty medicine, I'm going to talk to you. Well, I guess it will be a little more at you. I don't really vent much mainly because of the way I grew up. I've lived on the streets for my entire life. I've stolen from the rich, the poor, the religious, the greedy, and even from the charitable. I'm a thief. Plain and simple. Yet now, I've got the world on my shoulders and everyone looking to me for leadership and answers. The Blight is here. I've already fought the darkspawn, but in the battle that was supposed to end this war, we were defeated and the Warden-Commander who recruited me was killed. I watched him die right next to the king. I managed to survive with a few others and now we are trying so hard to save this kingdom and everyone in it. Its weird right? A thief one day, a warden the next, and the Warden-Commander a few days later. So please try to understand. I don't want to have to kill you, or hurt you. But Arl Eamon has to survive and I need the Urn to do it. I need his men to fight the darkspawn and his influence to make sure that traitor, Loghain, stays out of my way long enough for us to get it done," Damien ranted looking the men dead in the face.
The man that he had stabbed through the foot changed his expression. If someone was going to break without the potion it would be him. The other two had not reacted at all to anything he had said. Their indifference had started to get under his skin and irritated him beyond words.
"You know, I would really like to hear about why I'm a heretic. I assume it is because I have not been enlightened right? Please, tell me about your beliefs. If by doing that I realize that I am wrong to go after the Urn, then I will stop looking immediately," Damien said moving to sit down on the floor of the boat so he was at eye level with his prisoners.
"You wish to hear the truth?" the man with the injured foot asked. The other two immediately gave him looks like they were about to kill him.
"Yes, if I am mistaken in my beliefs, I want to know. Then I can let you go to continue your work," Damien replied folding his fingers. Maybe he wouldn't need the truth potion after all.
"We are the chosen guardians of the most holy and she blesses us for our service to her. We guard her and her children. We can not allow outsiders to know or enter or war will come to our home," the man explained.
"Most holy? But isn't the Revered Mother in Orlais? Or are you talking about Andraste?" Damien asked.
"That is all I can say," the man stated. Damien sighed lowering his head. What was he talking about? It sounded like they did not care about the urn because their deity was still alive and having children. However, this man was not one of her children because he specifically said that he was a guardian of the her and the children. Maker, why did cultists have to have such complicated and secretive doctrines?
Looking over his prisoners' suits of armor, there were dragon scales or teeth all over them. If they were not dragon slayers, then the children they were talking about must have been dragons, right? Meaning their deity had to be a high dragon. Where in Fereldan could a nest of dragons hide along with a whole village as well as hide the Urn of Sacred Ashes? The only place that made sense for something like that was the Frostback mountains. One of the villages high in the mountains maybe, but which one? All he needed was a clue, just one and he would know exactly where to go.
"I understand. Is there a way that I could ask you about your travels? Not where your from, but I need to know if there are darkspawn along the roads. I am heading toward Rainfere after this from Redcliffe. Do you know of any threats along that route?" Damien asked. He had traveled through Rainfere before. He heard about two villages in the area high in the mountains, but in order to figure out which one it was, he needed to know if they passed through Rainfere headed to the Spoiled Princess.
"I do not know. There were none close to Rainfere that I saw," the man answered.
"I appreciate everything you've told me, but I'm afraid I won't be able to let you go. For the attempted murder of the Warden-Commander and a Redcliffe knight, I arrest you all. You will be imprisoned in the dungeon of Redcliffe Castle until the Arl has recovered enough to sentence you," Damien informed the men before turning to Leliana. "Good news. No need for that potion anymore. I've got all the information I need."
"Quite clever, commander, but what have you figured out from what they told you?" Leliana asked beginning to put her supplies away again.
"I know they hail from the Frostbacks. It is the only place that they could hide the nest of dragons they worship, and judging from what he told me about Rainfere, the village we are looking for is the rumored Haven. A village that is so out of the way, most travelers have never been there. No point in trading with a village that has nothing with only one very dangerous path to get there. Just bad business. Same thing for criminals and thieves like me, no trade means nothing to steal. Although I think there might be something very valuable there now," Damien said rubbing his chin and taking a seat. Knowing the map of Fereldan and remembering rumors from his travels was really the only reason he knew anything about Haven. They really just got lucky. Honestly, if his prisoners had been from the South Reach or around the Brecilian Forest instead of the Frostback Mountains, they would have been sunk.
000
Sitting on the table watching the mages prepare the ceremony, Damien found slightly dreading his entering the Fade. Would he still have his weapons and his fighting skills? He did when Sloth over took him in the Circle Tower, so wouldn't that be the case here too? Although, there were templars here now. Would they try and take him if he showed his ability with magic? Wait, they couldn't take him. Wardens could not be forced into a circle and took help from anyone they could find from honorable warriors to blood mages. Even if they wanted to take him to the Circle, they would not be allowed to hold him there. Still, he feared what might come of him revealing his magic abilities.
"The mages are almost ready Damien. Which one of us will be going in?" Wynne asked approaching with Morrigan, Daylen, and Neria behind her. Neria kept her eyes low. She knew what his answer was going to be, but hadn't told the others. Probably her shy nature.
"All of you will be helping the Circle mages cast the spell," Damien said hopping off the table.
"But someone must enter the Fade," Wynne argued.
"You intend to go yourself, don't you?" Morrigan hypothesized crossing her arms.
"I do and I'll hear no argument on the matter. The fact remains that I am a mage despite my desire to hide it and I'm not going to send anyone into a dangerous situation that I'm not willing to face myself," Damien replied seeing Wynne getting ready to protest.
Wynne sighed and nodded. Thank the Maker, if she had come up with a good argument against his going in, he wouldn't have any defense against it. He wasn't trained to fight in the Fade against a demon by any stretch of the imagination.
"Alright, let's get started. Templars and Alistair, wait outside so you don't disrupt the spell on accident. Sten, watch the stairs and make sure nothing comes down to interrupt us. Lyna, Alyssa, and Leli, keep an eye on Jowan. If he tries to run at any point during the spell, cut him down," Damien ordered. He doubted Jowan would try to run, but this would also keep the templars from insisting on staying and seeing his magic abilities.
"I won't run. I swear it," Jowan assured him before taking his place in the ring of mages.
"Alright, let's get started," Damien stated as the templars and Alistair left.
000
His head felt like it was in a vice as he woke up. The Fade looked different from the last time he was here. The landscape looked yellow and the air had an imposing presence to it, like the sky itself was pushing down on him.
"If I were a demon with control over a kid, where would I hide?" Damien asked himself looking around. Figures made of haze glided across the ground like ghosts, but they were following certain paths. Perhaps they would lead him to the demon?
Suddenly, he could hear a child's voice echo around him. "I'll help him! You can't stop me!"
That had to be Connor's consciousness. If Damien could find him in this mess of energy, he would find the demon pulling the strings. However, would his weapons kill the demon in the Fade? No, he couldn't think like that. He had to believe that his weapons would kill the demon. He needed to channel his will to kill the demon into his weapons. That was what magic was after all, willing the spell into existence.
Drawing his daggers, he followed the ghostly figures along their path until he arrived at what looked like a massive arena surrounded by statues. At the center of the area stood a horned demon dressed in nearly nothing except a small cloth over her nether region and chains on her chest.
"Andraste's ass, are you seriously naked?" Damien asked lowering his gaze. She was certainly attractive but it was a demon. It... he had to think of this demon as an it, not a she.
"You are here to kill me? How interesting," the demon purred.
Damien took a slow breath. Steel my mind and tune out her voice. I need to fight like it's any other fight against a magic user. Stay light on my feet and use my senses to avoid the spells. Lowering his stance and raising his weapons, Damien watched the demon speak, but refused to listen to anything it said.
"Die!" he roared. Lunging forward, he slashed at the creature, but it avoided him nimbly. He had heard legends and rumors about how demons would seduce their prey with soft whispers and tempting offers playing on his weaknesses. Maker knew he had plenty of those to exploit. He had to kill this thing fast.
He pushed his magic power into his legs so he could keep up with the demon wherever it retreated to on the field before lunging forward again. His blade grazed the creatures side as he tumbled past it but quickly recovered. The demon rose up into the air as lightning gathered in its hands. Damien launched himself up and landed on its back. Flipping his blades down, he jammed both into the space between the beasts neck and shoulder and down into its chest.
"If you had just released the boy, you could have lived," Damien whispered in the demon's ear.
"Because of this, the arl will die," the demon answered in wheezing voice.
"No he won't," Damien responded ripping the blades out and back flipping off of his opponent. Landing lightly on the ground, Damien looked up to see the demon looking down at him with disgust in its eyes as it turned to dust and blew away.
Sheathing his daggers, the warden closed his eyes and sat down in the center of the battleground. Getting back should be just like waking up from a dream, at least that was what Jowan had said. Damien hoped the blood mage could be trusted.
He exhaled and opened his eyes again, finding himself on the floor of the great hall surrounded by the mages and his companions.
"Morning sunshine. I had the craziest dream," Damien joked as he sat up.
"Tis good to see your humor is still lacking," Morrigan teased as Lyna and Alyssa helped Damien to his feet.
"Send Alistair and one of the templars with Wynne and Alyssa upstairs to check on Connor. Neria, go with the Lady Isolde and Bann Teagan to check on Arl Eamon. Leli and Lyna, go with them as security," Damien ordered taking a seat and rubbing his face. "Sten and Daylen, go get ours and Bodhan's wagons ready for travel. We'll rest here for one more day, then start our trek toward Haven." Damien stood again, but suddenly his body felt unbelievably heavy and he collapsed. Lyna managed to catch him before he hit the floor and laid him down gently.
"Maybe we should rest for two days before we head out," Lyna suggested.
Damien sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're right. Two days. Everyone get some rest," Damien said reluctantly. He didn't like being hung up in one location especially if Loghain had assassins looking for him. Although in his condition, traveling would likely just make him an easier target.
"You can rest in one of our rooms upstairs, Warden-Commander," Bann Teagan offered.
"Thanks, I think I'll take you up on that," Damien responded as Lyna looped his arm over her shoulder.