Avina
"How do you feel?"
As Alistair helps her to her feet, she stretches her muscles. Just to check. Other than the nausea and the burn in her throat, she supposes she's fine. "I'm okay."
Alistair releases her and a blush heats her cheeks as he looks at her. Suddenly she's shy like she's never been before, not even around other boys and/or men. "Did you have dreams?" he asks. "I had terrible dreams after my Joining."
"Such dreams come when you begin to sense the darkspawn, as we all do," Duncan says. "That and many other things can be explained in the months to come."
"Before I forget," Alistair tells both Daylen and her. He holds out two chains, adorned with a large vial-like pendant, red with blood. Avina is instantly reminded of the phylacteries she had seen in the basement of the Circle Tower, but she quickly shoves the memory away as she takes one of the necklaces. "There's one last part to your Joining. We take some of that blood and put it in a pendant. Something to remind us... of those who didn't make it this far."
Duncan lays a hand on each of their shoulders. "Take some time. When you two are ready, I'd like you to accompany me to a meeting with the king."
Daylen raises an eyebrow as Avina's jaw drops. Never, not once in her life, had she ever suspected that she would be invited to a meeting with the king.
Avina continues to gape, so Daylen answers for her. "Very well, we will be there shortly."
Duncan pats her on the back. "Good. The meeting is to the west, down the stairs. Please attend as soon as you are able."
Alistair is already gone by the time she turns, and Duncan heads to the west for the meeting, leaving her alone with Daylen. He gives her an appraising look as she nervously shifts from foot to foot.
"So you made it," he says, almost sounding impressed.
Though it was likely a rhetorical question, she nods her head.
"Are you ready to go?"
She starts to nod again, but stops, eyes wide, and she slaps a hand over her forehead.
"No, I have something I need to give to the kennel master," she remembers.
Daylen heaves a sigh, but does not protest. "Very well."
Surprisingly, he follows her, keeping her stride quick to match his. She notices then how empty the camp is becoming, how... eerily quiet. The soldiers must already be lining up in the forest, preparing to fight of the darkspawn. Dread coils low in her stomach, cold and heavy, but she shoves it back as she approaches the kennel master.
"The mabari's stable for now, but not improving. Unless I get that herb I told you about, there's not much hope."
She pulls the flower she managed to pick in the Wilds out of her pack, smooths the petals, and hands it to him. "Is this the flower you're looking for?"
"Let me see," he says eagerly, looking more closely at the bloom in his hands. "Yes, that's exactly it, wonderful! Give me a moment and I'll turn it into an ointment."
Daylen looks like he's ready to murder the guy for keeping them as he crosses his arms over his chest. "He'd better be quick," he mutters.
It takes a few minutes, but the kennel master returns, a wide grin on his face. "He looks better already. I'm sure he'd thank you himself, if he could."
Avina lets out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding, almost wilting in relief. "What will happen to him now?"
"Let's give him a day or two to recover. Why not come back after the battle? Perhaps we can see about imprinting him on you?"
She can feel herself beaming excitedly like a little girl awarded with her first puppy. "You think that's possible?"
The man shrugs. "Maybe. It's likely he understands you're responsible for curing him. Mabari are at least as smart as your average tax collector." He scratches under his chin, glancing back into the pen. "Come back after the battle and just... take another look."
Alistair
"What?!" he sputters in disbelief. "I won't be in the battle?"
"This is by the king's personal request, Alistair," Duncan explains. "If the beacon is not lit, Teyrn Loghain's men won't know when to charge."
"So he needs three Grey Wardens standing up there holding the torch. Just in case, right?"
Daylen crosses his arms. "I agree with Alistair. We should be in the battle."
"That is not your choice. If King Cailan wishes Grey Wardens to ensure the beacons is lit, then Grey Wardens will be there. We must do whatever it takes to destroy the darkspawn, exciting or no."
Alistair pouts childishly. "I get it, I get it. Just so you know, if the king ever asks me to put on a dress and dance the remigold, I'm drawing the line. Darkspawn or no."
Beside him, Avina snorts and covers her mouth. "I think I'd like to see that."
A grin spreads across his face as he looks at her. "For you, maybe," he amends, "but it has to be a pretty dress."
Duncan sighs, but Alistair can see the amusement twinkling in his eyes. "The tower is on the other side of the gorge from the king's camp, the way we came when we arrived. You'll need to cross the gorge and head through the gate and up into the tower entrance. From the top, you'll overlook the entire valley."
Daylen nods. "When do we light the beacon?"
"We will signal you when the time is right," Duncan answers. "Alistair will know what to look for."
"And what if the Archdemon appears?" Avina asks.
"We soil our drawers," Alistair interrupts. "That's what."
"If it does," Duncan says, giving Alistair a pointed look. "Leave it to us. I want no heroics from any of you."
"I know what we have to do," Daylen says confidently.
"Then I must join the others. From here, you two are on your own. Remember, you are Grey Wardens," Duncan reminds them. "I expect you to be worthy of that title."
He starts to leave.
"Duncan..." Alistair stops him. "May the Maker watch over you."
Duncan nods. "May He watch over us all."
"Let's cross the bridge," Alistair yells over the noise of the battle. "And get to the tower of Ishal!"
Once again, Daylen is leading. He runs onto the bridge as quick as he can, followed closely by Avina and Alistair. Beside them, the archers fire arrow after arrow into the approaching horde.
He doesn't stop when he hears the first fireball hit the bridge behind him, or when he hears the cries of pain from the men who are crushed beneath it. He keeps running.
Only when Avina cries out in horror does he dare stop and turn around, only to see Alistair fall.
Before he can react, Avina is at his side, her hands glowing bright, wispy blue. As soon as she touches him he jolts up as if shocked, and scrambles to his feet. None of them say a word as they continue their journey up to the tower.
When they reach the gate, they run straight into the soldiers running out. "Help me," one of them says as they bump him. "They're everywhere. The tower, it's been taken!"
"What are you talking about, man? Taken how?" Alistair demands.
"The darkspawn came up through the lower chambers!" the man gasps. "They're everywhere! Most of our men are dead!"
"Then we have to get to the beacon and light it ourselves!" Alistair declares.
Daylen charges forward, only vaguely aware that the soldier has followed them.
The first floor is chaos.
Almost as soon as they set foot inside, they trigger a trap that goes up in flames. Only Daylen's quick thinking with a hastily-cast frost spell keep them from being burned alive.
Alistair's shield glows purple as he bashes one of the mosters in the face, amplified by Avina's power, and the soldier who followed them fires bolt after bolt with his crossbow.
The next few rooms have a less darkspawn and no traps, and for that the whole group is infinitely grateful. Avina and Daylen make short work of the further away groups while Alistair and their newest addition kill the closer threats.
In the room with the next set of stairs, there's a weapon stand. Daylen only hesitates a second before he grabs a mace and stuffs it into his pack. He certainly won't use it, but you never know, right?
Everyone does their best to ignore the dead bodies skewered on spikes beside them.
Daylen
The second floor at first seems empty apart from the unfortunate guards' bodies and the fire in the center of the room. Alistair turns to Daylen, face flushed from the exertion. "Maker's breath! What are these darkspawn doing ahead of the rest of the horde? There wasn't supposed to be any resistance here!"
"You could try telling them they're in the wrong place," Daylen suggests.
"Right, because this is all just a misunderstanding. We'll laugh about this later," he jokes. "At any rate, we need to hurry. We need to get up to the top of the tower and light the signal fire in time! Teyrn Loghain will be waiting for the signal!"
They charge ahead, but Daylen suddenly stops at the two doors, motioning for the others to do the same.
"As soon as we round this corner, I've no doubt there's an ambush waiting for us," Daylen cautions. "Alistair, Avina, go to the door on the left. Open it quietly. You," he addresses the soldier. "Will go to the right with me. Stay low, stay quiet."
Alistair and Avina obey, creeping over to the left door as Daylen and the soldier move to the right. Alistair opens the door a crack, then without further ceremony disappears inside, followed closely by Avina. The door shuts behind them with a small thump.
Daylen waits.
Only when he sees them come back out of the door does he dare open his, motioning for them to join him.
In the small hallway-like room, there are only two darkspawn.
But he was right. Just around the corner, there are several darkspawn archers lying in wait for them.
But the combined power of Daylen and Avina's tempests sends them into a horrible shuddering dance, killing most of them in moments.
The last room is quite like the one on the previous floor, and they make their way up the stairs.
The third floor is both easier and harder than the floors before.
In the first room there are more darkspawn, a couple traps, and within a few minutes they make it to the next room.
Cages line the walls, full of hounds alive and dead and the darkspawn inside, mostly genlocks, turn and snarl. A lever catches Alistair's eye and he calls out to the others.
"That lever over there! It releases the hounds!"
Faster than the monsters can anticipate, Avina ducks under the first's axe and sprints over to the lever, pulling it down with all her strength.
Only three dogs charge out of their kennels, but it is a tremendous advantage. The dogs are fearless, fierce and determined. They latch onto the enemies with unyielding grips as Daylen and the others fight their way through.
The rest of the rooms lining the hall are full of the foul creatures, but the dogs aid them. And at the end of the hallway, not one of them had fallen.
One last set of stairs.
The fourth and final floor is a nightmare that none of them could have ever imagined.
They rush in, searching for the beacon, to find a monstrous form huddled before it. Unhealthy purple-gray skin, riddled with scars, stands out, along with the monstrous horns protruding from it's head.
It turns and raises itself to it's full height - more than twice any normal man's - and roars.
Maker.
Alistair and the soldier charge forward, swords at the ready, as Avina and Daylen prepare their staves. At the men's first attack, the creature shrugs it off, effortlessly knocking them a few feet back.
Alistair stumbles, adjusts his stance, and attacks again. Avina raises pieces of stone from the floor and hurls them at it and Daylen casts frostbite to stun it.
At this point, the monster gets agitated, and swings one of it's massive fists, throwing Alistair across the room. The soldier manages to drive his blade deep into the beast's flank, and it shrieks in pain, grabbing the man and lifting him several feet above the ground. There he dangles, helpless in it's grasp, and the giant begins beating him with it's fists again and again.
Avina screams and flames lick at the ogre's legs, but it does not stop. The soldiers body is nothing but a bloody mass, his head hanging limply to the side. Daylen fears they may never defeat the creature.
But then Alistair is there, leaping higher than either mage had ever thought possible, and his sword slices into the monster's neck. It screams, dropping the soldier, but Alistair only drives the sword deeper.
With a low rumble, the creature falls back - luckily for Alistair - and the floor shakes as it's body hits the stone floor.
It's still not dead. It reaches up to grab at Alistair, but he is faster. Before the ogre can touch him, Alistair has yanked his sword out of it's throat and shoves it right into it's eye.
The arms fall.
It's dead.
Daylen doesn't have to look at the soldier to know that he is dead, too.
Shakily, Alistair stands up, dragging his blade out of the gore that is now the monster's head. He hops down, wipes a bloody hand over his face, then points over to the pile of wood that must be the beacon.
"The beacon is over here. We've surely missed the signal. Let's light it quickly before it's too late."
Daylen doesn't bother with lighting a torch and dragging it over there. With a flick of his wrist the wood goes up in flames, and the beacon is finally lit.
All they can do now is wait.
It does not take long.
It does not take long at all.
Daylen supposes he shouldn't have been surprised. Of course the darkspawn would see it. Everyone in the valley could. Of course they would come to investigate.
But he is surprised. When he archers arrive, he is the first to fall. He doesn't even feel it when he hits the ground.
From where he falls, he sees Alistair and Avina, readying themselves. Too late. The arrows are already nocked.
With a loud cry, Avina throws herself in front of Alistair, shielding him with her small body. He sees her fall back into the blonde man's arms, blood staining her robes.
It is one of the bravest things Daylen thinks he has ever witnessed. But it is still not enough.
The last thing Daylen sees before everything goes dark is Alistair's back, riddled with arrows.
Tel'abelas.
Next chapter: Waking Up.