Chapter 135: Our Duty
Wrong.
It was the only way that Alistair could describe it, It…the sensation he was feeling had been growing since he had entered the Alienage, like pressure in the back of his head, a tingling that went beyond what he knew as a warden, and hit him right at the heart of what he was before…
The young warden shuddered.
There was something going on in the Alienage, perhaps it had to do with the Tevinters that were here, or maybe it wasn't, but one thing was clear.
Something…was very wrong here.
While Alim conversed with Kally and her cousin, he moved to the back of the group, following the sense of wrongness he was feeling. The air seemed to grow colder as made his way down the muddy paths, the only sound coming from the crowd of near-panicked elves behind him, and the wind rustling through the ramshackle buildings of the Alienage. He…
His eyes narrowed.
No, he realized, that was not the only sounds he was hearing.
He glanced down and to his left, a small elven woman was there, sobbing in the mud, her black hair matted her clothes little more than rags. She lay curled up in a corner, cowering and muttering to herself.
The scene broke his heart, the poor girl; she couldn't be more than sixteen or seventeen, if he was any judge.
He moved towards here. The girl's eyes widened as he approached. Her elven ears lay back against her head like that of an angry cat.
"NO!" she whimpered, "STAY AWAY!"
He paused and raised his hands, seeking to keep her from bolting down one of the back alleys in this place.
"I'm not going to hurt you," he said in soothing tones, "Shh, is there something that I can do to help you, my good woman?"
The elven girl cowered.
"No ser," she murmured, "No ser, indeed."
She looked around like a frightened mare, her large eyes rolling with terror.
"Can you not hear them?" she asked, "They call for blood. So many voices, so angry, they drive the dogs here mad with their voices, poor little pups."
Alistair kneeled down; he kept his hands away from his weapons, not wishing to spook the poor mad girl.
She shuddered and covered her ears.
"The housemen," she whimpered, "Blood. They cry out for blood. So, much death, Grandma, help me! Please make the monsters go away!"
"What monsters," he asked, "Who are the housemen? Are they the Tevinters?"
The girl did not seem to hear him.
"Don't go into the orphanage," she murmured, "The housemen are there and they scream for blood! Since the night of the fires they came, we were so scared. Grandma…grandma protect me!"
Alistair pursed his lips, his expression becoming grimmer.
"Is your grandmother here?" he asked, "Can you go to her?"
The girl sobbed.
"Never met her," she groaned, "But I had her amulet, I…I lost it the night of the burning. I was so scared…I…I…"
The girl wailed and lay in the mud sobbing.
Alistair's expression was pained. He wanted to try and sooth the girl, but he did not know how.
The former Templar shook his head.
What was he supposed to do now? He could sense the wrongness of this place, and he suspected that this…orphanage was likely the cause. Perhaps the Tevinters had summoned something there, or perhaps the violence of the purge had caused something to rise. The veil was always thin after acts of violence, the greater the act, the weaker the barrier between this world and the fade. He…
"You shouldn't go wandering."
Alistair almost jumped. Carver stood behind him a cool look on his face.
"I doubt any elven thugs would think to attack a party as large as ours, but if one of us got separated," he shook his head.
"Clubs and knives might not seem like a huge threat when you're armored, but if enough attacked you at once."
Alistair nodded, he hated to admit it but their newest ally was right.
It would have been stupid to have survived this long only to be killed during a robbery in a back alley.
Carver continued to pin him with a cold stare. The young warrior crossed his arms over his chest.
"I'm supposed to keep you wardens alive. You're not making my job any easier."
Alistair rose.
"I sensed something," he told the other warrior, "dark magic, demons perhaps, they…they are close by."
Carver arched an eyebrow.
"You were a Templar?"
Alistair nodded.
Carver's mouth became a grim line.
"I felt it too," he admitted, "That…feeling in the air. I…felt it too."
Alistair gave him an arched look.
"What?" Carver asked.
"How did you…?"
The former soldier sighed.
"I grew up around magic, warden," he said, "My father, my sisters, they all have it. Magic might have skipped me, but that does not mean that I cannot sense it when I draw close to it."
He sighed heavily.
"Magic, it has caused me nothing but trouble. It has been a pain in my ass since the cradle. I was hoping what I was feeling was just coming from those Tevinters, but…it isn't…is it?"
Alistair shook his head, and looked down at the girl, she was pointing to a large ramshackle building not far away. The windows of it were mostly boarded up, with the scars of the fires of the purge that had swept through this place blackening it in spots.
Alistair reached out with his Templar senses; he had been trained to sense magic after all. He had never been given lyrium but that had not stopped him from using his abilities, the fact had boggled many of his instructors.
One knight-lieutenant had suggested that Alistair might have had a mage in his family. Alistair had never been able to confirm that of course, his mother being dead, and Goldanna…well with his sister rejecting him. He supposed it was not impossible.
It was not unusual for children born of mages or who had parents who were born of mages to be able to sense magic in others. Carver Hawke was an example of that, such young men and women tended to make good Templars, they had an easier time using the disciplines, and they did not require as much lyrium as those whose families had not been touched by magic.
Alistair frowned.
Whatever was going on, he did not intend to let it stand. The origins of this wrongness were…irrelevant. Even if the Tevinters had not created this problem; that did not mean that they could not turn it to their advantage.
Alistair pursed his lips. He looked around the Alienage.
These people had suffered enough. They needed to deal with this…whatever it was.
"We need to get Lim," he said.
"He is working out a plan for getting into that quarantine," Carver reminded.
"I don't think this can wait," Alistair said, "These people have suffered enough; the Tevinters don't see us as a threat, at least not an active one yet."
The former Templar shook his head.
"If the Tevinters here are up to no good, I would rather they not have a well-spring of demonic energy to draw on and throw at us."
Carver nodded.
"Makes sense," he shrugged, "Now you just got to convince your elven friend of the value of it."
The two men headed back towards the other. The girl continued to lie in the shadows, whimpering, and trying to bury herself in the mud.
Alistair's eyes narrowed.
Alim had kept him back recently, he understood the reason why, but he had grown tired of it. Whatever was in that burned out orphanage was something he had been trained to deal with. He might not have been a Templar anymore, but that did not mean that he would allow demons to harm innocent people.
The former Templar mustered his courage.
He would make Lim and the others understand the value of doing this. It might not have been the most visible threats they had faced so far, but he would be damned if he would ignore it.
Alim would understand that.
He had to.
IOI
After a brief explanation of what they had both felt, Alistair and Carver stood silent waiting for Alim to respond.
He let out a weak sigh.
"Sooo," he said, "this is a Templar thing?"
"I sensed dark magic, Lim," Alistair reminded him. If those Tevinter mages are behind it, shouldn't we deal with that first?"
The elf's brow furrowed.
"There is no proof that they have had anything to do with this Alistair. This so called…Tevinter mission; that is an enemy we can see."
Alistair's eyes narrowed in frustration.
"Even if the Tevinters are not responsible for whatever is happening in that old orphanage, isn't it our duty to help. You promised Kally that you would help these people."
The lady elf gave him a harsh look.
"Why are you bringing me into this?" she said, "We have to stop the Tevinters now, if they are doing something to my people…"
He gave her an equally harsh look.
"Wouldn't you rather strip them of a possible weapon," the former Templar asked her, "If this turns into a fight, if those Tevinters use blood magic, and there are demons or other blood mages hiding in the orphanage, what is to stop them from coming out and attacking us from behind?"
He turned to Alim again.
"Lim," he said trying to keep any sense of pleading out of his voice, "I will do this by myself if I have to, but I think I would stand a better chance with you and the others at my side. I think, no, I know that we should deal with this threat first. If I'm wrong we are delayed for a bit, but if I'm right…"
Alim's ears twitched as he considered Alistair's words.
The elf frowned.
Alistair made fair points. If the Tevinters were behind this they should deal with this threat right now. If they weren't and it turned into a fight between them and a group of Tevinter mages, then at least the bastards would not have demons to draw on when the fight began.
Alim smiled slightly.
Plus, he was pleased that Alistair was finally taking the initiative. If his friend was going to be king, he needed the strength to stand up for what he believed in.
The elven mage was more than pleased.
He had feared that if Alistair did claim the throne that he would let the nobles bully him. The fact that he had stood up to his leader now…
Alim was not upset, or angry, he was proud.
Their little Templars was finally growing up.
"If you are right," he said, "Then we eliminate a threat before the Tevinters realize we are one, if they are behind this and try to stop us, and then we will know that they are enemies and we won't hold back when we try to get a look inside that quarantine."
Both Shianni and Kally looked at him in shock.
"We're not going to help?" the elven warrior said sounding aghast.
Alim sighed.
"Of course, we are going to help, dealing with this will help. Alistair is right, for the moment the Tevinters don't realize that we are a threat to them; that may change when we deal with the orphanage."
Shianni's ears twitched, she looked like Alim had stabbed her in the back.
Leliana tried to console the girl.
"Trust me, girl," she said, "You do not want demons running loose in the Alienage."
Theron's eyes narrowed.
"What if there is another sloth demon in there," he asked, "I don't wish to get trapped in the beyond again."
Kally and Jowan both looked at him nervously. Neither his old friend nor the elven warrior had been with them when they were in the circle tower.
Alim sighed.
"We have learned a few things since then Theron," he said, "We won't give any demons a chance to pull such a stunt again."
He looked over at Wynne.
"What do you think Wynne? Is this a good idea or not?"
The old mage sighed.
"Alistair's points are all valid, warden," she said, "Any demons we deal with now won't have chance to either help the Tevinters or escape into Denerim proper."
Alim nodded.
"It is settled then."
He turned to Shianni.
"Keep an eye on those bastards for us," he said motioning to the mages standing outside the quarantine. "If it looks like they are turning towards the orphanage do your best to get the square clear."
Alim sighed.
"I would rather than innocents not get caught between us and a group of pissed off Tevinters."
Shianni's eyes narrowed.
"We're not afraid to fight."
Kally, who might not have fully been onboard with this plan, fell in line now that it was settled.
She put a hand on her cousin's arm.
"Alim is right Shianni. Mages don't fight like soldiers do…"
"And blood mages can turn a person's mind inside out of they are not careful," Alistair warned, he did not glare at Jowan but it was clear that he had not forgiven the man for what happened in Redcliffe.
The blood mage winced and looked away.
Alim adjusted his coat and hat.
"Looks like we have some demons to kill," he said.
He looked over at Alistair.
"You are the Templar here Alistair," he said, "This is your plan."
He gestured.
"Lead the way."
The former Templar chuckled nervously.
"This won't be like the Korcari wilds, "he promised, "I'll try not to lead us in circles this time."
Alim chuckled.
"That would be a good idea."
IOI
It was not that far of a journey from the square to the abandoned orphanage, but as they drew closer to the building, the rest of the group started to notice what Alistair had been talking about.
Alim shuddered.
It was not like his warden senses; it was…just a feeling, an uneasiness if you will.
He had felt something similar in the circle tower, but at that time, nerves about being back in that place had distracted him.
Here, he was far more focused.
The warden looked up at the building, at the ruined walls and boarded up windows.
If it was demons, then it was something else that touched by dark magic, he was sure of it.
For just a moment, he felt a twinge of fear, what he had felt back in his cell in Fort Drakon, that same sense of dark anticipation when he could hear the guards coming down the hall towards his cell…
The sense that he knew that the pain was about to begin, and that he could not stop it.
Alim gritted his teeth, and mustered his courage.
This was not Fort Drakon, he reminded himself, and he was not just some lowly prisoner. He would never let that place turn him into either a coward, or an emotional cripple.
He was afraid, he acknowledged that, but he would not let that fear overcome him.
He was still a warden, damn it, he was still a stormbreaker.
He would not cower before evil, not when it threatened those he cared about, the world he had sworn an oath to protect.
As they drew closer Alim began to notice little things, a dead dog not far from the entrance to the orphanage, He leaned down to inspect it. It had stabbed, repeatedly.
He shuddered.
As the son of a kennel master, he had always had a soft spot for dogs, not just Mabari, but others as well.
Bandit sniffed the carcass and stepped back whimpering, whimpering and bowing his head.
Alim reached out and touched the Mabari's head. He gave him a good scratch behind the ears.
"Not pretty, is it boy?"
The dog whimpered again.
He smiled and petted his friend's head.
"We'll set things right," the warden mage promised.
His ears twitched as inspected the slain dog, the body looked horrible, from both the look and the smell the poor creature had been dead at least a day or two, but the blood pooling around it.
That blood showed no sign of drying up, and it was not congealing.
He shook his head.
The whole think stank, and not just of death.
His ears lowered in anger.
It stank of dark magic.
"Excuse me."
He and the others looked up. They were surprised to see a single Templar approaching them. The man was armed with a shield and mace; he carried his helmet in his hand, but…
Alim winced.
The man was clearly not in his top form.
His bald head was scarred. His left cheek showed signs of being clawed, and the whole of his upper face with covered with healed over burn scars.
The Templar smiled, the smile was strange being that the right side of his face had also been burned, his lip turned up at an odd angle.
"Please do not be frightened, my friends," the Templar said in a cultured voice, "I still have some sight to see you by."
Alim snorted and rose.
A Templar he thought and a badly ruined one as well…
Wonderful.
Alistair, the one member in their party beside Wynne and Leliana who was comfortable with dealing with the chantry's soldiers stepped forward.
"Greetings, Ser," Alistair said, "I am Alistair, of the Grey Wardens."
He stuck out his hand.
The Templar took it surprisingly.
"Ser Otto is my name," the man said, "Templar of the Andrastian chantry."
The scarred Templar looked around.
"My order has received reports of possible Maleficarum operating within the Alienage."
He smiled again, proudly.
"My order has sent me to investigate."
Alim gave the man an appraising look. He held his tongue about mentioning the Tevinters, since the Templar had found this place; it was safe to assume that he felt the same thing that Alistair had.
The warden mage quirked his lip.
A Templar's help would be valuable, but, just looking at this Ser Otto.
The warden mage frowned.
"You don't look like you're up to be fighting Maleficarum anymore," he said coldly.
"Lim," Alistair spat.
"That wasn't respectful."
The scarred Templar chuckled.
"Your friend is not wrong warden," he said, "I was wounded in battle with a powerful blood mage; he called down fire and burned my face."
Ser Otto shook his head.
"My scars have healed, but I will never be the warrior I was again."
Alistair straightened.
"What does the order know about this place?" he asked.
"Very little, I fear," Otto replied, "I can only say what the rumors have been, that and the sense of unease that I felt since entering here."
Alistair nodded.
"I've felt the same," he said.
Ser Otto brightened.
"Ah," he said, "I believe you have had some Templar training. Am I right my young friend?"
Alistair nodded.
"I was a trainee before being recruited into the wardens."
Alim, recognizing that this might turn into Alistair telling the man his full story stepped in.
"We have found some strange things, ser," the warden mage said, "a girl saying that she has been hearing voices coming from this building, that and bodies near it dead for days, but still wet with blood, like it was still fresh."
Otto's scarred brow furrowed.
"The blood is not congealing; it could be a sign of demonic influence. Has there been any fighting in the Alienage lately?"
"Does not seem to have been any," Carver said.
Otto nodded and looked up at the orphanage.
The Templar's frown deepened.
"Perhaps we have found the source of the rumors," he said, "I must go and investigate."
Alim raised his hand.
"Hold Ser knight," he said.
Otto paused.
"Yes?"
Alim sighed.
"Not to underestimate you," he said, "But if there are demons in there, they would tear you to pieces if you went in alone."
The Templar smiled again.
"But I will not be going in alone will I?" he said.
Alim's ears lowered slightly.
"No," he said through gritted teeth, even if he said no, Alistair would likely overrule him.
He had given his friends the reigns for this little side mission.
"No," Alim repeated, "You will not be going alone."
Alistair beamed at him, but the elf still felt like he had been trapped into this.
Damn it.