Chapter 83: Being Brave
Alim shuddered as he entered the great hall of Castle Redcliffe.
His hands gripped his weapons a little tighter; the demon was most definitely here. He could feel its power. A sense of foreboding had settled over these rooms. He saw no undead here, but that did not mean that the demon had left itself undefended.
The hall reminded him a little of the circle tower, and the room where the sloth demon had made its domain.
Memories of their little journey through the Sloth demon's domain still haunted him. He tried to steel himself and not think too much on those events.
Whatever was going on in here, they needed to end it…now.
He glanced back at the others, grateful for their presence.
They were an odd lot to be sure. Nobles, witches, fighters, and brawlers, they were by no means a proper army, but then again…what proper army could have succeeded the way their little group had?
No, Alim was grateful for his allies and their presence, they had all walked through the void and back these last few months, and now he was asking them to do it again.
He wasn't worried; everyone here had proven themselves more than once.
Now…now it was time to do it again.
He led the way into the darkened corridor, expecting more revenants and undead to attack them any moment. What he heard next surprised him; it seemed out of place with such a sense of menace in the air.
Laughter?
He could hear the laughter of a child, and sound of excited clapping. He signaled for caution as he first stepped into the audience chamber.
He was not sure what to make of what he saw.
He counted at least eight guards, all standing watch over the room, their glassy eyed stares suggested bewitchment, Before the great hearth stood Arlessa Isolde, her head was down, and she looked more miserable than the elf had ever seen a human woman look. Before them Bann Teagan was dancing ridiculously, grinning widely as he tumbled and flipped like some court fool at a noble party.
The elf wrinkled his nose in distaste.
He could sense magic here, far stronger than anywhere else in this forsaken castle, and standing next to the Arlessa was the source.
A young boy, maybe eight or ten years old, the child stood cheering as the Bann made a fool of himself. This no doubt had to be the Arl's son Connor…
Though he was clearly not only Connor anymore, a darkness surrounded the boy now, not as dark as the shadow that had fallen over Uldred perhaps, but still quite dark.
Alim glared at the boy as he led the others into the hall.
It was only then that Connor noticed them; he smiled and snapped his fingers.
Bann Teagan stopped his dancing and sat down at the boy's feet.
The Connor-thing smirked at the new arrivals, no doubt thinking he had new toys to play with.
Alim intended to show him otherwise.
When the boy spoke, it was with two voices, one that of a child, the other something far older, and much more powerful.
"So these are our visitors, the ones you told me about mother."
Isolde flinched like she had been struck. Alim felt sorry for her, but tried to remember all the dead not only here in the castle, but in the village of Redcliffe as well. Isolde had allowed all those people to die by her actions. Jowan was not blameless, and neither was Loghain, but it had been Isolde who had set these events in motion.
She looked at her son with the most broken of looks, shame shone in her eyes.
"Yes…Connor," she murmured.
"And these are the ones who defeated my soldiers. The ones I sent to reclaim my village?"
"Yes."
The Connor thing snorted, it gave Alim an imperious look.
"And now…now it is staring at me, what is it mother? I can't see it well enough."
She gave him a surprised look.
"This…this is an elf Connor," she said, "You…you have seen elves before, we have them here in the castle."
The boy chuckled.
"Oh yes, I remember. I had their ears cut off and fed to the dogs, the hounds chewed for hours."
Evil laughter emerged from the boy's throat.
"Shall I send it to the kennels Mother?"
Alim crossed his arms, no matter what kind of demon was within the boy he refused to be intimidated.
He had faced their kind before.
Isolde grabbed the boy by the shoulders, forcing him to face her.
"Connor…please," she whimpered, "Please don't hurt anyone!"
The boy shook his head, for a moment…he looked confused.
"Mum…Mother," he murmured, "What…what is going on here? Where am I?"
Isolde sobbed joyfully.
"Thank the Maker," she gasped, "Connor? Connor can you hear me?"
The boys expression changed, his eyes flashed with hate.
He pulled her hands away, and shoved her to the ground.
The Arlessa stared at him wide eyed, her mouth open in shock.
"GET AWAY FROM ME FOOL WOMAN!" he spat with his demonic voice, "You are beginning to bore me!"
"Makers breath," Alim heard Ser Perth gasp behind him, "What has happened here?"
Alim's eyes narrowed.
He knew what was going on, and what it would take to end it.
Isolde glanced up at them, her eyes shiny with tears.
"Grey Warden," she murmured, "Please…please don't hurt my son. He…he is not responsible for what he does."
Alim's ears lowered slightly.
"It seems we have found the evil you warned us about."
"NO!" Isolde moaned, "Don't say that!"
Morrigan chuckled behind them all.
"So…the boy has become an abomination and sundered the veil."
Isolde was back on her feet.
"It isn't his fault," she gasped, "It was the mage, the one who poisoned Eamon! He started all this. He summoned this demon! Connor…Connor was just trying to help his Father!"
"And made a deal with the demon to do so?" Morrigan shook her head.
"Foolish child."
The demon's eyes flashed with anger.
"IT WAS A FAIR DEAL!" it snarled, "Father is alive, just as I wanted!"
Alim glared at the creature.
"You have had your fun creature," he spat, "I give you one chance to save yourself. Let the boy go, or we will stop you."
The Connor thing laughed.
"My fun is just beginning elf," it spat, "It is my turn now! It is my turn to sit on the throne, and send out armies to conquer the world! No one tells me what to do anymore!"
Bann Teagan giggled.
"No one tells him what to do! NOBODY!"
The ensorcelled noble laughed.
Connor glared at him.
"Quiet Uncle," he snarled, "I told you what would happen if you kept shouting didn't I? Yes… I did."
Teagan fell silent still grinning like a fool.
The demon returned its attention to Alim and his allies.
"So you seek an audience do you elf? That is fine; you will have the audience you seek. Yes, you shall."
Connor stood a little straighter, like a little boy trying to mimic his Father, or a demon trying to act like a child trying to do so.
Alim was not put off by the act, after the circle tower, he knew what it was they faced.
"Tell us…elf…what have you come here for?"
Alim stood straighter. The demon was clearly not some low level scavenger. He suspected a demon of desire that made the most sense from what he had heard so far.
Desire demons, why was it always desire demons?'
The elf sighed.
He gave the boy abomination a hard stare, trying to pin him in place.
"I'm here to help Connor," he replied.
The demon laughed.
"I…I do not need help. I can do everything now. I can do it all by myself."
He glanced up at Isolde.
"Is that not right Mother?"
The Arlessa winced under his gaze.
"I…I don't think…"
The demon snorted again.
"Of course you do not think," it spat, "All you do is spoil everything! Ever since you sent the knights away, all you do is deprive me of my fun!"
He turned on Isolde, his eyes flashing with anger; a dark glow seemed to surround the boy.
Alim raised his staff, lightning crackled at its tip.
That got the demon's attention.
Alim grinned at him.
"You do not want to pick on her creature," he said, "Not when I'm so very entertaining."
The Connor thing smirked again.
"You are no better than she is," it whined, "Trying to deny me what is mine. I…I crave excitement and action!"
He glared hatefully at the elf and his companions.
"You spoiled my sport by saving that stupid village."
Connor's eyes glowed.
"Now," he whispered, "You will repay me."
"CONNOR! NO!" Isolde shouted.
"GET BACK!"
Alim's voice rolled like thunder, the elf raised his staff.
Castle Redcliffe shook with the rumble of thunder!
The Connor-thing shrieked with fear and fled.
The guards attacked the wardens and their allies…
…The guards, and Bann Teagan.
Lady Isolde cowered in the corner as Alim and the others dealt with their attackers. Teagan lunged at Alim, only to be driven back by a thrust kick by Leliana. Shades emerged from the shadows to aid the demon's pawns.
Wynne and Morrigan blasted away at them.
Seri and Oghren waded into the thickest fighting. Alim shouted for them to pull their blows, the guards were just ensorcelled, they might still be able to be saved.
Kally, Fergus, And Alistair tried to surround Bann Teagan, to stop him without hurting him.
A shade slithered away from the battle, it made straight for the Arlessa.
The Lady shrieked as it stood over her, its clawed hands raised.
An arcane blast struck it in back, the demon crumbled to ash.
Isolde's flashed when she saw who had saved her.
Jowan.
The mage looked sheepishly at her.
She flung herself at him.
"YOU!" she snarled, "You did this to my Connor!"
The mage managed to cover up, but not before taking several frantic blows and scratches from the Lady's nails.
Around them, the battle ended.
Large stone hands pulled the Arlessa off the mage.
"Let me go!" she wailed, "He hurt my Connor!"
Shayle sighed. She looked at Alim.
"Can I crush the screeching woman?" the golem asked.
Alim snorted, as healing his arm of a sword wound.
"I would rather you not," he said.
The Golem shrugged and dropped her. By that point Jowan had fallen back behind Alim.
Isolde's eyes flashed with feral anger.
Alim shook his head.
They had managed to secure the hall, but they were not done yet.
Connor still remained, and he was not going to make this easy.
No, not easy at all.
IOI
"I will go."
The words came out of Theron's mouth unbidden. Leliana and the others looked at the Dalish was shock in their eyes. He knew what they were thinking, that of all of them He was the last one that they ever would have expected to volunteer for Alim's little…mission.
He was not surprised by this; most of them had only seen him as a good natured companion keeping the darkspawn off them with his bow and ax. They did not see the hunter in him.
They did not truly understand.
He stood behind Alim, Zevran, Oghren, Seri, Sten, and Bandit with them. The rest stood with Leliana and Alistair.
Shayle stood watching over the sobbing Isolde, she still refused to accept Alim's decision.
The golem would make sure that she did not interfere.
Alistair and Wynne were clearly not pleased with Alim's decision; they both had tried to talk him out of it.
The bard gave her lover a pained look.
"Alim…please," she said, "You…you can't do this!"
The elven mage sighed.
"We have no choice."
"Yes, we do!" Alistair said hotly.
Alim glared at his friend, a few moments ago they had all stood united, and now the group had split over what had to be done.
Theron understood, but that did not mean that he would not do what was expected of him.
They all knew what had to be done.
The Connor-thing had to die.
They had discussed it with Jowan, Isolde, and the recovering Bann Teagan. The abomination had fled to the royal apartments, frightened by Alim's thunder, at least the child portion of the creature had been.
That would not last long.
Jowan had offered to use a spell that would allow the wardens to confront the boy in the fade. It would cost someone their life to do it, but he believed it could be done.
They could kill the demon and save the boy.
Isolde had even offered herself up as sacrifice.
Alim had rejected that plan. He said that he did not trust Jowan's command of blood magic that much, and besides it would not save Connor in the long run.
Even if they killed the demon, Connor was still a mage, and the Templars would come.
Alim knew Greagoir, the man would take one look at the damage done to Redcliffe and pronounce that the boy was too weak for training right there. If Connor went with them willingly they would likely make him tranquil as soon as stepped inside the tower's doors.
Theron remembered seeing those tranquil, he…he would not wish their fate on anyone, especially a young boy.
Alim said he would not sacrifice Isolde for a boy that the Templars would kill anyway. He preferred to save at least one life here.
Wynne had suggested returning to the circle tower, that they could take the ferry across the lake and bring back enough mages and lyrium to enter the fade and kill the demon that way.
Alim dismissed that option as well; it was not a matter of thinking that it would not work, but a matter of time.
The Connor-Thing was afraid right now, but its courage would return quickly, the demon would likely use the boys fear to gain a tighter hold on his soul. It would likely use that time to burn away the last remnants of Connor within itself.
The wardens would likely return only to find a new army of undead waiting for them, and all that had died fighting for Redcliffe would have perished for nothing, Theron hated to admit it, but he thought that his fellow elf was right.
Alim explained this to them all, his points were valid.
Isolde did not want to accept, neither did Alistair or Leliana. Fergus kept silent and Kally, it seemed, supported him.
That left it to them.
The Dalish warden glanced at their leader, their keeper.
Alim was not asking them to be heroes, he was asking them to be brave.
Theron understood what that meant.
When he was boy the clan had encounter one of their fellow clans, one that had been set upon by humans several days earlier.
During that fight, their keeper had been wounded…badly. The shemlen had closed in around him, looking to finish what they had started.
The Keeper had given himself to a demon to try and save the clan.
It had not worked.
The creature had slaughtered the humans, but then had turned on the members of his own clan.
The First, one of the survivors of the attack, had begged Marethari to help them, to send hunters to end the monster…
…to give the keeper peace.
Merrill had not understood that, she felt that they should let the creature go, it had not asked for its fate.
Marethari had told her that the actions of one Dalish were the responsibility of all Dalish. The possessed elf had not only killed humans, but his clansmen as well, his kin.
He needed to be put out of his misery, for all their sakes.
Theron remembered the faces on the hunters that had been sent out, the grim determination. They knew what the keeper was asking of them, and they accepted that charge.
The keeper was asking them to be brave.
Theron had known that day that he wished to join the ranks of the hunters. That he wished to do what was necessary to keep his people safe.
It was not being a hero, it was being something more. It was sacrificing something more.
Leliana begged Alim to stop, to think about what he was doing.
Connor was just a boy.
Alim said he knew, but it still had to be done.
He asked for volunteers to help him. He did not ask anyone to go who was not willing to go.
When the time came, he would end it. It was his choice as leader.
He would bear the responsibility.
Theron's hand had shot up first.
He would not let his warden brother face this alone.
Alistair, who knew the Arl's family, chose to stay behind. Morrigan stayed with him, out of disagreement, or solidarity to Alistair. Theron did not know.
Alim gave those that were staying behind a sad look.
"I don't blame you," he said, ""But at the same time I ask that you don't blame those that come with me either. This is my choice, if I could do it myself I would."
The elven mage stood straighter.
"We get this done, for Redcliffe and Ferelden, my responsibility, my choice, and my fault if it comes to that."
The elf gestured to the others, it was time.
Theron took point drawing his ax.
"Alim wait."
The group paused.
Alim gave Leliana a pained look.
"Leli…I can't…"
"I won't ask you to," she said coldly, tears running down her cheeks.
She joined them.
His eyes widened slightly.
"You don't have to…"
"Yes I do," she said grimly, "We face this together, you and me."
She brushed his fingers with hers.
She gave him a brave smile.
"I trust you," she whispered.
Despite the grimness of the situation, he squeezed her hand.
She smiled lightly.
They started after Connor. Suits of armor, animated by magic attacked them.
Alim and his allies made short work of the defenders.
Their eyes fell on the stairs leading to the royal apartments.
Theron saw Leliana take her place at their leader's side.
Theron felt no desire for Leliana, but in that moment, he was a little envious of their leader.
Alim was lucky to have such a strong woman.
IOI
"We end this," she whispered.
Alim nodded.
Upstairs the demon waited, was it wrong that Alim hoped that the demon would twist Connor into some kind of monster? That it would make what they had to do easier?
He could not say for sure.
What he could say is that he was grateful for Leli, he would not have blamed her for sitting this battle out, but here she was, at his side, bow in hand.
He…he could not ask for more.
"I love you," he murmured.
She closed her eyes and whispered a quick prayer.
"For Conner's soul," she informed him, "And for ours."
The elven warden nodded.
He understood.
"Alim?"
"Yes?"
She gave him a pained look.
"I love you too."