As a lot of other people have likely noticed. Spare time is easier to come by in recent months. Plus, reading and writing helps escape from the craziness of this year. Thanks for sticking with me through all of this. Hope everyone is safe and healthy. Thanks to everyone who has stuck with me even after my extended absence and I appreciate the reviews. Getting very close to 100 reviews and most of them are positive which is awesome. Thanks everyone and enjoy the next chapter!
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Damien stood out in front of the gate, but the pressure of the magic around him was so heavy, he could barely move. The weight of the air seemed to increase by the second and he felt an even heavier presence in the old ruin than standing in Flemeth's presence when he and his fellow warden recruits had first met her.
"The Veil is so thin here. It almost feels like I'm dreaming," Wynne stated. Her eyes darted all around the area constantly looking for threats.
Damien normally would have done the same, but the pressure he was feeling drove him to his knees. Lyna and Leliana were immediately at either side of him.
"Damien, what ails you?" Leliana asked, placing her hand on his forehead.
"His sense of magic is stronger than the rest of ours," Daylen answered for him. "This might be too much for him."
"I'll be fine," Damien responded. He struggled to get his feet under him as he allowed his magic to flow through his muscles, strengthening them and steadying his body.
"You can't fight like this," Alyssa argued from the front. "Let us go in. We'll scout it out and figure things out from there."
Another wave of pressure splashed against Damien like a swell of river rapids and he could feel something else mixed in with it… a demonic presence. Extremely similar to the demon in the tunnel in Haven or the captured beast below Honnleath.
"Demons," he whispered, feeling the crack in his mind opening under the pressure and his power starting to spill out. He could feel the ground, stones, his companions, and the two dozen corpse soldiers that were digging up toward them. "Ambush!"
The corpse soldiers broke through the ground a meter in front of the group. Alistair and Alyssa took their positions at the front of the group on either side of Sten. Leliana and Lyna leveled their bows ready to shoot. Kalli and Zevran took up the flanks and Shale stepped forward, ready to charge. Wynne, Daylen, Neria, and Morrigan stood at the back with Levi and prepared their spells.
Damien could barely see with the pressure that held his head in a vice grip and the single crack in his mind was joined by more. He could feel everything around him in a far more intimate fashion. He could feel the heartbeats of those around him, the hum of magic within Shale that must have been what animated the golem, and the chilling shivers that accompanied the shambling corpses. He wanted the corpses to be gone. Their presence was making his blood run cold even as his head and skin burned hot.
"Get back!" Damien roared, throwing his hands forward. The rotting corpses were immediately flung through the air with such force that they burst apart on impact against the walls and ground. The pressure around him seemed to have lessened and Damien gasped in a breath as he collapsed to his knees again.
"Maker's breath, what in the Void was that?" Alistair asked, looking back at their leader.
"I've never seen such power in a force spell," Wynne added, placing a hand on Damien's back as he gasped for air.
Damien wanted to answer with a better response than "I don't know" but that was all he really had. He did not understand the power anymore than the rest of them would… well, maybe the mages might, but that was a gamble. None of that mattered at the moment. He could still feel enemies around them. Ten more corpses were coming from the far parapets on the other side of the courtyard, while another half dozen were coming from an elevated earthen ramp that led to what looked like an abandoned smithy.
"Not over yet. More coming," Damien growled out through gritted teeth.
"He is sensing them. No… tis more than that… he is feeling everything, even us," Morrigan said. She stepped in front of him and knelt down to look him in the eyes. She placed her slender fingers on either side of his head. With her gaze locked on his, Damien was not sure what she was doing. There was no time for whatever it was.
"What are you talking about? What are you doing?" Lyna asked.
"Examining his mind. Tis an odd talent to display," Morrigan said without breaking eye contact.
"Enemies," Damien managed to say and pointed in the two directions they were coming from.
"We'll get them," Lyna promised. She stood and after some words with the others Damien could not hear, the group separated into two groups leaving Neria, Morrigan and Kalli behind to guard him.
"What's… happening… to me?" Damien wheezed.
"A barrier in your mind is breaking," Morrigan informed him. "The power behind it is immense. If it were to break free, it would overwhelm you and likely cause your death."
Kalli looked back at the witch with fear in her eyes. "Can you help him?"
"I can repair the barrier, but not enough to completely seal it," Morrigan responded, still focused on Damien's eyes. He could feel her magic entering him through her fingers and sealing the new cracks that had opened but left the original. "Don't...scratch...the wall."
Damien nodded but still could barely stand because of the pressure. "I need you to drain some of my power like your mother did when I was wounded. It helped me move around her easier," Damien ordered.
"I will see what I can do," Morrigan replied as she closed her eyes and lowered her head. Her hands remained on his face and Damien could feel the weight that was pressing down on him starting to lift, but his muscles were weakening as well. He quickly realized that using his magic within the fortress was likely not going to be possible and if it was, the more he used, the heavier he would feel. Instead of moving faster, he would slow down. He would have to rely on his blade skills and wits, rather than his speed and agility.
The pressure started to lift as Damien could feel his power being pulled from his muscles. It was as if he were waking up from a long illness and his body had weakened. It had happened several times during his younger years. It had taken months to get back into shape after his illnesses.
The others returned as Damien slowly pushed himself to his feet.
"Are you okay?" Lyna asked.
"Okay-ish, I guess. Enough to keep moving," Damien responded. "We'll clear the outside, then work our way as a group from room to room."
The group nodded at his orders and started their search of the outside courtyards. There were a few crates of rotted food and rusted weapons, but not much else.
"Nothing else here," Alistair announced as the group returned to the entrance to the main fortress.
"Alright, defensive formation. Kalli and Zevran will take the flanks. Since I'm not at my best, I'll bring up the rear. Call out doors and hallways for us to clear," Damien instructed. He would usually take the forward scout position, but he felt so heavy. Like he was trying to swim through tar with a horse sitting on his back. Sweat had already started to run down his face and he pulled his scarf away from his neck.
"Maybe you should wait out here instead. You look like you're going to be sick," Neria stated, coming up to his side and placing a cool hand on his forehead "And you are burning up."
"I'll rest once we clear the fortress. I'm not about to send all of you into this corpse-infested ruin without me. Besides, I need to figure out how to function even while there is this much magic around me. I promise, no close combat for me until I have my strength back," Damien replied, cutting off any protest from the others. He could see from their expressions that his decision did not sit well with them, but because he had made the call, they accepted it.
Suddenly, an immense pressure knocked Damien back to the ground as ghostly figures appeared around them. The figures appeared to be dressed in the old Fereldan Royal army uniforms. They did not notice Damien or his group as the stayed in a shield wall formation and slowly withdrew from the main entrance of the keep.
"Fall back! Fall back and regroup!" shouted a ghostly figure with an officer's armor on.
"Taking the peak will not be easy, my lord," a soldier reported as a figure from the line spun around like he had been hit with a crossbow bolt before vanishing.
"I gave the wardens one chance to die with honor, but instead the hold up like cowards. We will follow the king's advice then. Starve them out," the officer replied waving for the troops to continue their retreat.
"But the peak has months of supplies!" the other argued.
"Then we wait."
The ghostly beings vanished as if they were blown away on the mountain breeze. Damien felt the pressure lift slightly and slowly returned to his feet.
"Alright, who slipped me mushrooms?" Alistair blurted out. Damien snorted as he tried to stifle his laughter.
"Would you behave for two minutes?" Wynne scolded, giving him a disciplinary tap on the helmet with her staff.
"We all saw that right?" Kalli asked with a white knuckled grip on her daggers.
"Yes, but what was it?" Levi asked from the back of the group.
"Echoes from the Fade. A glimpse into the memories of this place," Morrigan replied. "Yet, how is the Veil so thin? What caused this?"
"I get the bad feeling that we'll find those answers inside. Let's move," Damien said pointing to the main entrance where rotted and charred wood was piled on either side of the archway. Whatever the echo was telling them, the story continued inside the keep.
000
The ghosts had appeared a couple times as the group moved through the halls. Their first look at the wardens that had defended the keep was just inside the main entrance where a woman gave a speech to rally the starving defenders. Levi let them know after the echoes vanished that the commander was his great-great-grandmother. Damien smiled at the pride the man took from his ancestor's defiance of death.
The group fought room to room, laying the walking corpses of soldiers and wardens to rest while fending off demons. The demons were not as strong as the malificar that they had faced in the circle tower, and the team cut through them easily.
"Are you seeing this too?" Alistair said from the front as they entered a large area. Damien could see that the location would have been a smart choice as a choke point to minimized the number advantage the king's troops would have and spotted signs off fierce battle everywhere.
Damien worked his way forward with Levi and saw what had Alistair so awed. A massive, dark purple haze surrounding a pitch black portal hummed against the far wall.
"I'm seeing it, but not quite sure what I'm seeing. Any of the mages want to weigh in here?" Damien asked looking back at the four mages in the formation.
"Maker's breath, that's a…" Daylen started before he took a step forward.
"That's a what?" Damien asked, extending his hand to stop the mage's advance.
"A demon gate," Wynne finished. "It is forbidden summoning magic that hasn't been seen in decades. What is it doing here?"
Suddenly, Damien felt a wave of magic hit him like a wave. He dropped to his knee again as ghostly figures appeared before them.
"Fortify the door. Avernus, we need you! Make them pay for every inch," ordered Levi's ancestor. She wore heavy, plate armor with the warden emblem on the chestplate. Just like Damien's style, she was up front in the middle of the fight with her troops. Damien could respect that about her.
A mage in long robes started to mutter a spell under his breath and the portal before them started to form. Rage demons and shades poured out and attacked the armored soldiers that had broken the warden lines.
"Press them! Press them now!" the commander shouted as she sliced through a soldier's chainmail and sent him bleeding to the floor. "More Avernus! Whatever it takes!"
Damien's brows pinched as the hazy figure of the mage made a pulling motion with his hands and the portal expanded allowing a massive demon unlike anything Damien had ever seen before to enter their realm.
The demons suddenly turned on the warden defenders and started slaughtering every living soul.
"Maker's breath," Neria breathed as Zevran placed a calming hand on her shoulder. Alyssa put her hand over her mouth and looked like she wanted to be sick. Everyone else seemed to be frozen where they stood.
"No, I order you to attack the king's men!" the mage shouted with an accusing finger pointing at the armored soldiers.
"Fool!" The demonic voice rumbled across the walls and into Damien's bones. He could feel the memory and power behind this demon like listening to a seasoned general address his troops, but this was no inspiring call to arms, this demon song a deadly ballad of doom. "So much death, suffering, and, oh yes, blood. The Veil is torn now. Your soul is mine, Avernus."
Damien watched as the mage stumbled backward, away from the battle in what looked to be a mix of sorrow and terror. "Acolytes, retreat now. The battle is lost." With those words, the mage fled from the room and up a flight of stairs. The commander yelled after him, but then the echo faded and the group was left in the empty room with the demon gate.
"The wardens summoned demons. I can't believe it," Levi breathed.
"Wardens are permitted to do whatever it takes to win. Not so sure I would have made the same call, but outnumbered like that with no food, no reinforcements, and no hope, I could see making that call. But, here is my main question, what sparked the siege? I know the Wardens were banished, but this seems too extreme," Damien said moving forward into the room. He could feel the portal and the sickeningly, inky feeling of the air around it. He hoped that the combined knowledge of the four mages in his group would be able to figure out how to repair the veil so he did not have such a heavy pressure on him all the time.
"I'm sure we'll find more answers further in," Levi replied. His response sounded more hopeful than certain. Damien wanted to find answers for Levi. The man had stood by the Wardens even as Loghain had smeared their name and helping him seemed like the least they could do for his loyalty.
The group continued further, not wanting to arouse any of the demons by messing with the portal before they had cleared the keep of hostiles. The group found their way into some kind of meeting room with a door on either side. Damien could feel a strong demonic presence coming from the left door and signaled for the team to be careful and investigate that room first.
Alistair and Alyssa led them into the room while Sten guarded the rear with Zevran and Shale. Kalli had moved to Damien's side to help him since the struggle to remain upright had drained his stamina. Liliana and Lyna took up positions to cover the two shield wielders, While Morrigan, Wynne, and Daylen moved into the support position. Neria placed a hand on Damien's shoulder and he felt a wave of magic pass over him, restoring some of his strength.
"Thanks," Damien said with a nod. He could still feel the pressure of the magic around them, but the boost made him feel rested, like they had taken a break from a long hike. He was still fatigued, but had his second wind.
A figure stood behind the desk on the opposite side of the room. Damien quickly recognized the being from her heavy, plate armor and the warden shield on her back.
"Come no further, Warden. This one would speak with you," the corpse hissed as the commander's corpse turned to face them.
"Who… what are you?" Damien asked with his hand on his blade.
"This one is the Dryden. Commander. Sophia. All these things," the demon said with an amused chuckle.
"Grandmother?" Levi breathed in absolute horror. Damien placed a protecting hand over the man's chest and pushed him back into the protection of the group before directing Kalli to guard the man from danger with a few hand motions they had been practicing in Redcliffe.
"You have slain many of the demon ilk to get here. This one would propose a deal," the corpse offered. Damien could hear a second, rumbling voice beneath the haggard, feminine voice that escaped the corpse. The young warden quickly realized that the demon that had called Avernus a fool in the most recent echo must have possessed the commander's corpse.
"Is there anything of Commander Sophia left in that body?" Damien asked. The question was more for Levi's sake, since Damien knew they would have to kill this abomination.
"Ha ha ha, this one has tasted her memories, seen her thoughts and hidden places, but she is food for this one, no more, no less," the demon answered.
The young warden could almost feel the slumping of Levi's shoulders behind him and a sorrowful sigh escaped the man. The youth had no intention of making a deal, but the longer he kept the demon talking, the easier it would be to get in close and lay the body to rest.
"Tell me about this deal," Damien said keeping his grip on the blade at his hip, but turning to make it look like he was resting his hand there instead of being prepared to draw.
"Making deals with demons now, are we? I must say the crows have misjudged wardens. You are more cunning and ruthless than we suspected. Carry on, I will not get in the way," Zevran sang out from the doorway.
Damien wanted to punch the assassin for presuming that he would ever consider making a deal with this creature, but the supportive voice seemed to relax the demonic corpse before him slightly.
"Your crow is most wise. This one will explain the deal," the corpse started. "This fortress traps me. This one sees places in the Dryden's memories. This one would see the world for itself. For this one to be free, go to the mage tower and destroy. In return, this one seals the veil. No more demons, no more enemies. Your peak would be safe. Just let this one go into the world."
Damien's eyes widened. That was an enticing offer. The tear in the veil was causing most of the problems with the keep. With it closed, he could start to rebuild the Gray Wardens within its walls and have a safe place to send wounded and hide from Loghain's forces while they fought the blight. If it had not involved setting a demon possessed warden corpse loose upon the Thedas, he would likely have jumped at the chance.
"If I let you go… and that is a big 'if'... what will you do?" Damien asked as he circled the desk. He wondered if he could trick the demon into sealing the portal first. He had no idea how powerful the demon was or if Sophia's abilities were part of the demon's skills now. If she could have spotted a liar, the demon probably could too.
"This one will go. This one will see. This one will feed," the demon responded.
And there's the deal breaker. Damien thought as he closed his eyes trying to look like he was considering the options. He ran through the different ways he could kill the demon in his mind as well as how he could word his agreement to be able to keep his word but still dispatch the demon after it held up its end of the bargain. It was a little dastardly to go back on his word, but this was a demon, he doubted anyone would blame him for stabbing it in the back.
"First, I want proof that you can hold up your end of the bargain. You fix the veil and seal it. My mages confirm that it is completely repaired, then my group and I head up to the mage tower," Damien said. The group started to protest but Damien held up a hand silencing them.
"I smell deceit in the air, but not in your words. The deal is acceptable. Follow," the corpse ordered as it made its way around the desk and toward the door.
"Why would you agree to let it go?" Daylen whispered in an angered tone. Damien raised a finger to his lips and dropped back so the demon would not hear his response.
"I don't recall agreeing to let it go. I simply said that we would go to the mage tower once the veil was repaired," he said with a smirk. He could see the smile hidden behind Leliana and Zevran's gazes as they followed the corpse while the others looked ready to mutiny. Hopefully, their discontent with the agreement would mask his true intentions toward the monster.
As they approached the demon gate, the corpse sniffed at the air like it was smelling a feast and sighed.
"Mere strands stand between this world and home. Can you feel it as I do?" the corpse asked looking over its shoulder at Damien.
"All I feel is the magic around us pressing down on me. Just seal the damned thing already," Damien snarled.
"You are not so different from this one and the others of my ilk, mortal. This one senses the blood in your veins," the demon stated with a mischievous grin.
"What are you talking about? The only thing in my blood is magic. That's all," Damien argued.
"The blood of your father, perhaps. Your mother, maybe. This one can not tell for sure, but this one senses its own kind within you, warden," the demon purred.
"I'm not possessed, you bastard. Andraste's ass, just fix the Maker loving Veil!" Damien demanded, taking a threatening step forward.
"A deal is a deal," the demon said, turning back to the portal. "This one will feed the veil to strengthen its bonds. The others will not make it easy. Are you ready?"
Damien drew both blades and signaled for the others to take up a defensive formation around the gate. "As ready as I'll ever be," Damien replied, but the demon's words were echoing through his mind and pounding on the barrier Morrigan had repaired. Could what was hiding behind the barrier really be a demon? If so, there was no way that he was exploring what the newly found powers could do. Could all of his magic be demonic? If it was, could the mages help him purge it, or was it a choice like blood magic? He would have to talk about it with Wynne, and maybe Morrigan. It could even be worth a trip back to the circle or even Flemmeth if it meant answers.
The demon started to weave glowing patterns of magic in the air as shades, rage demons, arcane horrors, and desire demons poured from the gate and tried to attack the possessed corpse.
Damien kept his distance since he could not move like he usually did and focused on deflecting the enemy blows and countering with his own. Luckily for him, the demons were not well trained in melee combat. They swung wildly with long claws and used magic to push back against the weapons and spells that were directed at them.
With a wide swing, Damien buried his blade into his opponent's head and the demon turned to ash. The others managed to beat their own demons as the veil sealed and the weight on Damien lifted. The youth let out a sigh of relief as he turned back to the possessed corpse.
"It is done. Now, go do this one's bidding," the demon snarled. Damien could feel the demon had been weakened by the action and he approached with his baldes still drawn. The moment he was within reach, the young warden fed his muscles with his magic and swung the blades in a scissor motion. The motion was so fast that the demon barely had time to widen its eyes as the blades passed through the flesh and bone sending the head toppling to the ground gaping.
"Never said that you would be alive when we went to the tower," Damien said, flicking the ash and rotting blood from his blades before returning them to their sheathes.
"Cunning indeed, my dear warden," Zevran hummed with a smirk.
"What? I was very clear about what was going to happen. I never agree to let that thing go, or to let it live," Damien said with a shrug of his shoulders.
"You would do well as a bard, my friend," Leliana said, giving him a nod.
"I'm no minstrel. I could probably hunt with my singing voice," Damien jested as he waved the group forward.
"You seem to be feeling better," Kalli observed as Damien stretched his arms.
"With the veil sealed, I'm not feeling so much pressure anymore. I can still feel the magic around us, but its not like a golem on my back anymore. No offense, Shale." Damien shot the golem a smile.
"Is it calling me fat?" Shale snapped.
"Of course not. Just heavy. All the better for squishing those pesky pigeons," Damien said, eliciting smiles from everyone except the golem and qunari.