The story will not be very interesting or different until much later. You have been warned.

Daylen

Daylen did not want to become a Warden.

He still does not.

It's not about him or what he wants, however. The Blight coming, and the Circle only sends seven mages? Seven?

No. They need him. He's more of a help here on the battlefield than sitting in the tower, hating and being hated by the templars, learning and teaching unnecessary lessons.

But, ugh, fighting darkspawn is not high on his list of things he wants to do.

With Avina Surana, of all people.

Yes, yes, Avina's a talented girl and all, but she is not prepared for war and Daylen knows it. She's too soft. Too nice. Too vulnerable. She's not ready to be a Grey Warden.

Daylen thinks she won't survive the Joining.

And if she does, she'll be devastated by the cost.

This was his problem with her. Back in the tower, he treated her coldly as well; not because he hated her - because he didn't, and still doesn't - but because he had no time for friends such as she. Girls like Avina were too delicate, usually afraid of the outside world, and that bores him. If she despised him, it was of no concern to him.

He had other friends in the tower, of course. And occasionally he did not spend his nights alone. The tower was full of lonely mages of both genders and Daylen is a fine looking young man; dark hair, dark eyes, dark voice. But these friends of his were not overly important to him. Not like Jowan had been to Avina.

Daylen thinks himself very practical. He does what is needed, when it is needed, no matter his personal feelings. And this is the main difference between him and Avina. If she is not careful, she will not last the night.

Ostagar is more or less what Daylen was expecting; a camp full of sweaty men of all ages with few mages and even fewer females. The lack of elven Wardens surprises him.

Avina scurried off moments after meeting the king, leaving Daylen to his thoughts. He shrugs indifferently; it matters little to him whether or not she follows him. He will not follow her, so he is on his own.

He meets Daveth first, and he is so obviously a street rat cutpurse that Daylen can hardly keep polite conversation going. He smiles and nods when Daveth speaks, but that is all he does.

Ser Jory is a swordsman, a large man of thick build and thin hair. He doesn't seem too smart, but then again how smart could one expect a Grey Warden recruit to be?

He does not search for this 'Alistair' fellow; he has seen no sign of him or Avina. Daveth and Jory claim to have seen nothing of an elven woman in mage robes, so he assumes she went off in search of him.

While he waits, he goes to stand by the fire like Duncan and the others. Though Jory and Daveth talk amongst themselves, he does not join their conversation.

And finally, Avina shows up. Daveth's eyes widen and his mouth curls into a predatory smirk as he watches her lean body move, and Daylen almost growls in disgust. A blonde man in grey iron chainmail follows closely behind her, and Daylen does not miss the way her eyes linger on him.

For a moment, the recruits are uneasy; Alistair will not lead. Daveth does not wish to either, and Daylen knows Avina does not want to take control from anyone who may already desire it.

Daylen sighs. "Alright, follow me, then."

Ser Jory lowers his eyebrows in confusion, but he does not question Daylen's motives.

And once they are out of the gates, they wander straight into a pack of wolves.

He has never seen Avina in action before; he admits, she's stronger than he anticipated. She sweeps her arms and a faint purple glow surrounds her small body - a shield - and she spins the staff in her hands, preparing to fight at close range. A wolf lunges for her ankles and she cracks the metal down on it's skull with shattering force.

Daylen does not do the same. He is already in motion, stepping forward and tapping into the Fade. He brings a hand up and at once there's a flash of light and lightning leaps from his outstretched palm, straight into the flank of one of the animals.

The fight continues, but Daylen can't help but feel as if they are not alone. He has the distinct, nagging feeling of something or someone watching him.

When the first darkspawn emerges from the Wilds, he can feel the terror coming from Daveth and Ser Jory. Avina falls back and stretches her arms out toward the sky, as if embracing it, and a fireball shoots down on the other group with a wave of unbearable heat.

"Avina!" Daylen barks. "We need their blood! We cannot collect it if it's dry!"

She spares him a glance, her eyes wide, and she nods uncertainly.

He is glad she is here, though. Her cries of excitement and rage seem to spur the men on and they fight with less fear in their eyes than before. Her wards prove quite useful when they come up against a darkspawn emissary. The opposing magic barely fazes Alistair and he slams his shield into the monster's face.

When at last they reach the ruined temple, Daylen is so paranoid he's glancing over his shoulder every few seconds. He knows something is watching him. He can feel it.

Then, "Well, well," comes a female's voice. "What have we here?"

Daylen whips around, ready for anything. But instead of an ambush, he is greeted with the sight of the most stunningly beautiful woman he has ever seen.

Morrigan.

Tel'abelas.

Next chapter: the battle.