Chapter 26) The Retreat

Aiden POV


"Aiden, do you know how the legend of the Savior King began?" Valendrian asked me as I sat at the tree, taking a break from my chores.

"The Rebel Queen's death, right?" I answered automatically, leaning against the cool, rough bark. "Didn't some banns betray her?"

"Yes, indeed." He sat down beside me. "Some banns pretended to side with her, only to kill her themselves."

"Why are you bringing it up, Valedrian?"

He smiled, and pointed up to the sky, which soon erupted in beautiful fire-flowers. "Because I'm sure a lot of people are going to be asking what's being celebrated."

"They're celebrating a death?"

"Her path ended the day the Savior King's began. So, yes. Sometimes, it takes the death of the old for the young to become legends."

"That's morbid."

"It is, indeed." He patted my head. "Now, off to those chores."

"Yes, sir."


I brought my greatsword up and around, slicing a group of five darkspawn into pieces, and ignoring the blood that splattered my face, caught in my mouth. The pounding rain washed most of it into my armor anyway. Cleon was somewhere in the corner of my eye, darting about and sliding under guards. Me? I just broke through, and watched everything turn to red mud. The mages were behind me, continuing to heal who they could, enough to send them back to camp.

Shaking my head to keep my vision from tunneling, I looked up at the Tower, just as I had minutes ago. The beacon was still shining in the dark, fire sharp against the rain and clouds. But, even though it was there, there had been no reinforcements. Had something happened? What could've…?

Something bit into my neck and I grabbed it by the head, ripping it off and throwing it to the ground. A hurlock, if I'd heard the other Wardens right. Weaponsless, it had turned to teeth. As it tried to get up, I slammed my pommel into its skull, cracking it and sending the blood and bone flying. My stomach rebelled and I had to fight off the urge to be sick. I half-wanted to fall into that rage I'd had when killing everything in the Arl's estate. At least I couldn't think then! But I couldn't. I couldn't get the rage up. It took everything to keep the bile down. No need to add more to the mess.

"Wait, what's she doing here?!" I heard Cleon yelp. I jerked my head up in time to see Lady Elspeth racing through the chaos. Though she was armed with a strange white and moss-green bow and a quiver full of arrows, neither were out as she ran, ducking and dodging and twisting her way through the battlefield. Like she was dancing. "Especially…!" Especially alone. I could see no other fresh faced soldiers around. What…?

"I'm going after her," I found myself saying. "Cleon, secure the area!" I thought I heard him protest, but I ignored it in favor of surging forward. Back into the main part of the battlefield. As I ran, I cleaved and scythed through darkspawn, pointing the way to where the healers had set up. Maybe they'd get out alive. Maybe not. But I tried, right?

"Aiden, I thought you were ordered to help with the wounded!" I turned at the voice and saw it to be King Cailan's. We'd ended up back to back after both whirling to clear an open space to talk briefly. Blood poured down the side of his face from a head wound, but his eyes were sharp with protests and questions. "What are you doing here? I need you there?"

"M-my apologies, your majesty." Why had I disobeyed? "I saw Lady Elspeth on the field and moved without thinking."

"El…" The word caught in his throat and he started coughing. I hesitantly patted his back, and grimaced at how red my gloves became. Splatter or…? "Andraste's flaming blood, what's she doing here?"

"I don't know." Honesty. Yay. "Shall I continue looking for her?"

"I…"

"Ah, Cailan, there you are." Despite the bleeding grazes and blistering patches of skin, Lady Elspeth showed no signs of pain or tiredness as she slid to a stop next to us. "I've been looking for you," she continued, not even waiting for the king to finish his wordless protest. "You need to fall back. Uncle Loghain is leaving."

"And sends you as the messenger?" King Cailan asked dryly. Lady Elspeth flinched and looked away. "…Well, this will be an awkward conversation. I know we're not getting along lately, but it's really not like him to just leave a bunch of soldiers behind. Well, I suppose if he thought it were for the good of Fereldan overall, maybe…" He sighed, and tugged Lady Elspeth into a one-armed hug. She leaned her cheek on his shoulder, but said nothing. "You were up higher. How bad are we talking?"

"There's no end, Cailan. That must be why Fergus couldn't come back."

"All right." He tightened his hug on her briefly before releasing her and snagging a couple of fighting soldiers nearby. "We're falling back," he told them. They just stared. "The situation far exceeds expectations. Find your comrades and relay the order." They hesitated a bit more, but nodded and saluted, racing to do as ask. "Aiden?" I stiffened at my name. "Mind doing me a favor?"

"What is it, your majesty?" I asked automatically. I glanced around and saw the darkspawn closing in. A few ogres were approaching too. Not good.

"Mind helping Elspeth get out of here?" For a brief second, I saw Lady Elspeth glower, but King Cailan simply smiled at her and her face blanked back to stoicism. "I'd really appreciate it."

"Of course, your majesty." I bowed awkwardly, and turned to Lady Elspeth, who gave me a small, sad smile in reply. "Shall we?"

"I'm in your care, Aiden," she whispered, managing a curtsey in the leather skirt. I barely heard it over the noise of running soldiers fighting for their lives. "Thank you."

As we ran, Lady Elspeth and I kept shouting, "Fall back! Retreat!" My throat throbbed each time I even opened my mouth, but I kept repeating the words over and over. Some soldiers slipped in the mud or tripped over corpses, but the people nearby helped them. The only ones who seemed to continue the fight were the Wardens, who seemed all to willing to intercept the darkspawn to allow more to escape.

"Just keep going!" one of them told us as he just flat out picked up and threw a genlock at a nearby darkspawn mage, killing them both. "You, newbie, find Duncan if you can! If not, grab the treaties and keep running!"

"Ulster, need your arm over here!" another one called from nearby. I could only tell he was a thin, androgynous man with all the armor on. "Hurry and run, you two!"

"We are," I muttered to myself. Thankfully, though, the rain made it so that they didn't hear as Lady Elspeth and I kept running. We had to slam to the ground, though, as a lightning spell crashed above our heads. "Magic isn't very friendly, is it?"

"I think a mage panicked and loosed a spell too soon," Lady Elspeth mused, picking herself up and absently wiping the mud off her face. "CAILAN!" I was startled by the sudden yell, and whirled to try and find out just why she'd loosed one. I found out immediately, though. King Cailan had stopped to pick up a few fallen soldiers. Right as an ogre had thundered up. With no time to dodge, he could only stare as the ogre swung his fist, wait as it crashed into him.

Lady Elspeth and I could only watch as he went flying, blood already raining down, and crash to the ground with a loud, metallic thud.

She was the first to react, running for him. I followed just a few seconds later, mostly to keep them both in sight. "Cailan!" Lady Elspeth yelled as we approached. She dropped to her knees, leaning over to shield him from the rain. "Cailan!"

"El… Elspeth…" I heard him rasp as I slowed to a stop a respectful distance away. I was surprised he could speak, but kept still as Lady Elspeth fell to her knees at his side. "El…"

"I'm here." She gently touched his cheek to reinforce her words. I glared up at the sky. The clouds had taken a different color than a normal storm, and the rain just fell even harder. Blighted storm. "I'm here. Can't you see me?"

"No. Dark." No, there… well, humans did have poor night vision, but… "Elspeth… important… Ali…"

"Easy, Cailan," She brushed the bloodstained, rain slick hair out of the king's face and I tried to figure out what he was trying to say. "I already know." Know what? "Just leave it to me, okay? Trust me."

"Always…" King Cailan attempted to smile, but the effect was wasted as more blood dribbled out of his mouth. "Thank… you… little…" I strained my ears for the rest of the sentence, but heard nothing. Lady Elspeth leaned back on her heels, and the rain beat down on the king's face, but there was no flinching as his eyes stared at the sky, not seeing anything.

Lady Elspeth remained like that for a few minutes, head down and eyes closed, before straightening, back ramrod straight as she looked up. Stonefaced, just as she'd been those days after Highever fell. "What's the fastest way back to camp?" she asked me softly. I just blinked at her, a little baffled. "Aiden?"

"Ah, my apologies, my lady," I yelped, realizing I almost disobeyed an order. "It's… uh…" Not that I really had a clue. "I'm not sure, actually. I know a way, but…"

"That will do." Her voice was even. "Where is it?"

"That way." I nodded to the distant bridge, frowning as I realized something was… off about it. Wasn't sure what. But it didn't look right. "Though, I would like to find Cleon before we head up, if you do not mind, my lady."

"Is that not him there?" she asked, pointing in the distance. I whirled and saw Cleon fighting against a strange looking darkspawn. Heavily armored compared to the others, with a horned helmet covering its face. Fear dripped down my spine as I saw it shatter one of Cleon's daggers, shards flying and digging into his face.

I started for him, but Master Duncan beat me to it, crashing into the darkspawn and sending it sprawling to the ground. "Vanguard," I heard him growl as he grabbed Cleon by the arm and tugged him over to me. He looked down and winced when he saw the King's corpse, before going stoic. "I thought so. They've been far too organized."

"Uncle…" Lady Elspeth began. He didn't even look surprised to see her there. "I…"

"I can guess what happened." He briefly glanced up at the beacon, still flickering, and sighed. "Aiden. Cleon."

"Sir?" I answered automatically, feeling my back straighten from long years of service. "What do you need?"

"I need you to run." Huh? "Take Elspeth and run, you two." The strange darkspawn slowly stood up and regained its weapons. "She knows where the treaties are. Use them as you see fit."

"And you, Duncan?" Cleon demanded. He was shaking, but I thought it from tension, not fear. Not like me at all. "What about you?"

"My path ends here." Those words were far too calm, and I thought I caught a touch of relief in them. "But this is where yours will begin. GO!" There was such power in his voice that the three of us obeyed without one more word, sprinting up towards the camp even as our legs burned with strain.

I glanced back over my shoulder once. Just once. Master Duncan was fighting that strangely armored darkspawn with everything he had, blood seeping out of his armor as he bellowed orders to the other Wardens nearby. None of them showed any signs of wanting to retreat. In fact, the few who glanced back caught me looking and waved me on with reassuring smiles before they returned to the fray.

When Master Duncan hit the ground, and that strange darkspawn held its axe overhead and swung down, I looked away. That was a bit of red I just couldn't bear to see. But I heard it anyway, in the screams of fury and sorrow loosed by the Wardens, and I had to pause to be sick at the thought of what just happened.

By the time I recovered, Cleon and Elspeth were long ahead of me and I had to catch up, wincing as pain shot up my legs each time my feet hit the ground. I didn't see them as I thundered into the camp, jumping over the beginnings of makeshift barricades. On the bridge, I could see darkspawn writhing, trying to get through. The corpses strewn all over the mud told me some had already. Shaking my head, I stepped over the bodies, heading to the king's tent as my first place to check. For once, I got lucky. They were both right there.

"There you are!" Cleon hissed as I stepped inside. The tent I'd been in just a few hours ago was a mess, like a tornado, or Shianni, had whirled around in it. Papers and blankets were tossed aside. Lady Elspeth raced about, throwing the portraits into a small bag as she ran her fingertips over a chest in the corner. "What happened?"

"Tripped," I lied. He stared at me incredulously, but I just shrugged. I didn't want to talk about it. "So…"

"She ran here. Won't say why. Again." Right, he'd had this problem when we were back at Highever. "So I can't even help!"

"It's spelled to only open for a handful of people." Both Cleon and I jumped as Lady Elspeth actually answered us. "I just need to… ah, there we go." The corners of her mouth twitched up as the chest popped open and she quickly reached inside, grabbing papers I recognized. The treaties. She set them to the side and them picked up a longsword. She popped it out of its sheathe and I was startled to see yellow runes dancing across the blade. Wha…?

"Why is it glowing?" Cleon growled, glaring at it like that would stop it. "And why are you picking it up?"

"It glows in the presence of darkspawn," Lady Elspeth explained, buckling it awkwardly to her waist. "Uncle Maric found it in the Deep Roads. It used to glow blue, but now it glows yellow because-"

"Do we really need the explanation?"

"It's also said to weaken nearby darkspawn." Cleon scowled, but Lady Elspeth simply stared back at him. "I thought it might be useful."

"Nothing else, she has a back up for when she runs out of arrows, yes?" I reminded Cleon, mostly just to get out of here. "Lady Elspeth, is there anything…?"

"No, there's nothing more to grab," she told me. That said, she quickly flipped through the treaties and thrust two of them at us. "Please, take this in case we're separated." I did as she asked and saw she'd handed me the one for the Tower. Cleon was slower to listen, but it was good logic. I saw him smile slightly and wondered which one he'd gotten. What were they even for? "Are we ready?"

"If you can run with that on your hip, yes," Cleon grumbled. I shot him a look, but he looked back at me unflinchingly, hands tight on his daggers. …Was he hating that he had to run? Maybe that was it, actually. There were tales of Dalish pride, after all. "Let's go."

We dashed out, making our way to the exit. As we did so, we repeated the orders we'd received on the field. "Fall back! Retreat! The battle is lost!" But it didn't seem like they heard us as they continued to hold the barricades, buying time for others to get out. I didn't get it, really. Why would they do that?

Just before we left the ruins, I stumbled again and looked down to see what I'd tripped over. I froze at the sight. Nessa's parents, face down in the mud. I stooped automatically, intending on carrying them, but then… then I realized I had nowhere I could carry them too. "I'm sorry," I whispered as I straightened. I didn't think they could even hear me, but… "I'm so sorry."

And then I turned and ran, leaving behind a world of mud and red that would haunt me for however long I lived.


Author's Notes: Here we go, the terrible end to the Battle of Ostagar. Switched up a couple things here. Just minor things for a little more fun. Yes, grabbing Maric's sword here. Esther's bow is the Sorrows of Arlathan, the DLC item you get from completing Witch Hunt. Ulster the Warden was actually mentioned in a previous chapter, chapter 8, I think.

Next Chapter – Dragons with Nuada. Yes, I said dragons.