Chapter 65) Temple of Sacred Ashes

Layla POV


For a tower with only a handful of floors, it was ridiculously easy to get lost. I should not still be getting lost! I had been here for a year already!

Sighing, I glanced around, peeking up at the other mages. I thought about asking for help, but I could not. They were too scary, too unapproachable. The words dried on my tongue.

So, I wandered, trying to find my destination but failing miserably. Tears pricked my eyes. This was… so unbelievably frustrating…

I stepped inside a room, to calm down, and I blinked slowly as I realized there was no one here. It was quiet, peaceful, a statue of Andraste smiling down on me. What was this place…?

"There you are, Layla." Squeaking, I whirled, and ducked my head when I saw Irving in the doorway. "Did you get lost?" he asked gently. I nodded, ashamed. I had supposed to be at his room for lessons eons ago. "Quite all right, my dear. I still forget where some things are. Wynne teases me mercilessly for it." I tentatively glanced up and he held out his hand. "Come now, though. As peaceful as it is, the Chantry doesn't really like us holding lessons in the Chapel." So, this was the Chapel…

As I took his hand, I promised myself that I would visit here again. It was calming and peaceful, like the Maker was truly protecting us. I loved that feeling…


The Temple was surprisingly… well, perhaps pristine was not the right word, though it was more intact than I expected. There were holes in the wall, snow had fallen in. There were some paths blocked completely by rubble, and others by ice. Some of the statues were shattered; some of the wall carvings were worn away.

But it was huge. It was absolutely huge. I could not believe that a building so large had remained so hidden.

"Works of wonder like this truly is enough to make one believe in miracles," I breathed, eyes wide as I tried to take in everything. "I cannot think of how this place was built, even with magic."

"Minrathous giant structures that surpass this, so I imagine it is quite possible," Nuada replied absently. I scowled at his back so easily ruined my mood. "Its all dark, but breathtakingly beautiful. You can see the keen architectural genius that shaped it."

"You have been to Minrathous?"

"Yes, I have. It was an accident. There was a storm, and we kind of got attacked by pirates." What. "Then some Tevinters helped us out, but brought us in for being suspicious. Father fast-talked them out of imprisoning us. I think he used Elspeth and me for it. After all, what pirate keeps eight-year-olds on a ship?" He paused, looking a little thoughtful. "Wait, was I eight? Maybe I was seven, or perhaps nine? I can't remember. We were still stationed in Antiva at the time, though. I remember that much."

"Where have you not been, Nuada?"

"Well, I've not been to Seheron and I haven't been to the Anderfels either. There are places in the Free Marches I haven't been either. We just went to Kirkwall, Starkhaven, and Tantervale, with a very brief stop in Ostwick because of a storm." He grinned at me over his shoulder. "I haven't been to Estwatch either."

"What is that?"

"It is the home, essentially, of the Felicisima Armada." His grin grew wider as I frowned in confusion. "They're pirates."

"…Oh."

"I have also not gone to Rivain, sadly. Father had wanted us to go so that we could experience the culture there, but we had to quickly go to the Free Marches for some diplomatic reason."

"Wait, where is Rivain again?" I could not picture this. I had not looked at maps!

"It's a peninsula that borders only Antiva, to the north." He held out his hand and I took it without really thinking about it. A second later, though, I realized it was because the footing was slippery. This hallway was really long. "Antiva sits also in the north, bordering the Free Marches and the Imperium. Seheron is an island to the north of the Imperium." So, that logically would put… the Imperium to the west of Antiva? "Nevarra is south of the Imperium, west of the Free Marches." I was right then. "It borders Orlais. The Anderfels are to the northwest. I think its borders are Orlais and the Imperium."

"Then Fereldan is in the South." I remembered that. I remembered sailing 'south' from Kirkwall.

"Yeah, we are south of the Free Marches, separated from them by the Waking Sea. Our only neighbor, surface wise, is Orlais." He helped me over some rubble. He hadn't let go of my hand. "It plays a part as to why Fereldan is traditionally isolationist."

"I see." I smiled at him. "Thank you for the impromptu lesson."

"Aldous would be pleased to hear I can rattle all that off." His warm smile was a bit sad. "He really had to work to get that information in my head. It was much less interesting than the prostitutes outside."

"Nuada!" He laughed, quietly. "You are impossible." Though, it was a bit of a reminder. He had… um… physical experience? Oh, Anders would laugh at how I shied away from the term. But, he did. He flirted, and was handsome, so… would he be all right, with someone like me? I had no such experience, and had only fallen in love once before. Would he be…? O-of course, that was assuming I was even attractive to him, and I probably was not. I was not… um… ugh, brain, I hate you. This was so not the time.

I could not help the little sigh that escaped me, and I prayed Nuada did not notice. He probably did, but things would be much easier if he did not. So, I simply sighed again, and glanced around at the ruins, wondering when we would find the end to the empty hallway. Were Alistair and Elspeth stuck in as boring of a hallway? We had split up to better search the area, since Brother Genetivi had no knowledge of where inside the Temple the Sacred Ashes would be, not that he was of any real help because he had started studying the carvings by the entrance shortly after helping us inside, but-

My breath caught as we finally reached the end of the hallway, and I saw it opened into a giant, giant library. More importantly, it was a giant library that had intact books.

"Maker…!" I gasped, bolting for one of the shelves. I slipped on some ice and nearly crashed into it, but that did not matter as I pulled one of the books out. It was dusty, and a little moldy, but you could still read the words clearly. Even better, it was written in a slightly older version of King's Tongue, meaning it was still perfectly readable and I would not have to cross reference a language book.

Laughter caught my ear, and I turned to sulk at Nuada as he continued to laugh at me. "Alas, woe is me!" he declared dramatically, lifting his head for good measure. It emphasized how long his hair was. "Abandoned for musty books!"

"I am sorry you hold less interesting to me than books lost to time, never seen by those outside of the inhabitants of Haven in decades." For some reason, that just made him laugh harder. "Help me look through. We might find a clue to where the Ashes are."

"You just want to go history diving." Still, he came to my side and pulled out another book. "Oh, now this is interesting." He showed me the cover. I could not read it. "This is Tevene."

"Then you read and summarize it."

"Ma'am, yes, ma'am." I gave him a dirty look, and he snickered. "If we can't find something quickly, we'll need to move forward and come back later. I can't imagine we will stay hidden for long." Yes, it stood to reason that there were more Haven inhabitants here in the temple, guarding it.

"I understand." I had better read quickly, then. This was too good to pass up!


So, sadly, we could not find hints to the Ashes whereabouts in the library, though there was a lot of information hiding within. Moving forward, though, we did discover one thing. The temple was actually built into the mountain, leading rather neatly into caverns. Yes, this had to have been carved with magic. The question was… had it been co-opted to safeguard the Ashes, or had it been made specifically for them? I doubted we would ever find the answer.

"I hope Elspeth and Alistair are all right," I murmured as we hiked through the caves. I thought of the other group, in Orzammar. Were they in caves right now? Had they gone into the Deep Roads? I hoped they were okay… "I was expecting to meet up with them by now." Surely, the right path did not lead to a wildly different spot, right? Though, when we had split up, we had not realized this went into the mountains. Did Haven have any secret paths? Was that how the village had hidden so long? Did they escape into the Frostbacks by them? There was no time to check, and I doubted it would be us who did.

"I'm sure we will meet up with them before long," Nuada reassured. He helped me over some rocks. "Hopefully the delay is due to them having a very intense kissing session, though somehow, I doubt it." I burst into giggles, doubting it too even if it was a fun mental image, and he grinned. "There's a smile." Huh? "You were sighing over something earlier, before the books." …He did notice. Of course he did. "What's wrong?" Oh, nothing was wrong! I am just in love with you, and it is driving me up the wall!

"It is nothing." He gave me a skeptical look. "It… is a personal problem?" It was a very personal problem and he was currently the last person I wanted to know about it!

Nuada tilted his head to the side, before snapping his fingers. "Ah, do you need to deal with moonday bleedings?" …That was his first thought? That was truly his first thought? "I can go up ahead if-"

"That is not it at all." I... would think I would just tell him if that were the case. With everything we had gone through, being embarrassed about something natural seemed a bit silly to me. "I am fine on that front." Truthfully, despite it definitely being longer than a month, I had not had one since before leaving the Tower. Perhaps the stress was throwing off my cycles? "It is something else, that I… well…"

"Very well." He smiled gently, perfectly accepting that I didn't want to talk about it. "But don't turn into Elspeth and me, okay? Be kinder to your head."

"Very well." I could only sigh. This crush business was much more troublesome now than it was at the Tower. It truly was. Though, had he figured it out? He was observant? He was also maddening. Ugh… this was not the time. I hated my brain. Why did it latch on to stupid things? Was it just tired from everything and enjoying the silliness? This was the first time the two of us had been alone-alone since I realized my feelings.

How did people deal with things like this every single day? It was tiring! …What was that? There was a sound. There was a quiet, almost clacking like sound, like claws on stone. Was there a creature here? What sort of creature lived inside the mountains?

"Layla!" Squeaking, I felt myself slide back as Nuada pushed me out of the way. It took me two seconds of staring to realize that yes, there was a creature here, and it had scales. It was large, and it had scales. This was… "Well, I see the dragons are enjoying the temple!" Yes, I suppose so, but can we worry a little more of the fact that it was crushing your armor, and arm, Nuada?! "Layla, if I lift it-"

"Yes." Figuring out what he needed, I drew my rapier. I still was not exactly comfortable with using it, but this should be a simple task. Well, it was in theory, at least. "I have heard dragon scales are among the best armor."

"I know a smith in Denerim who would kill to forge something from them." But there was a critical weakness. The scales did not cover the belly, and it was soft. Aiden had mentioned that, when telling us of the dragon they fought. "Well, here we go." Nuada twisted, pinning the dragon between his uninjured arm and chest to keep it from ripping out a piece of his arm as he exposed its stomach.

Then, as quickly as I could manage, I stabbed it, the tip going in easily, and slashed up. Blood spurted and gushed, splattering us both. Thankfully, though, it died quickly. I would have hated to see it suffer so much. We were the interlopers here, after all. But we could not die yet. So…

"Let me see your arm," I ordered, sheathing my rapier and reaching out. "I have to check for bone and infection."

"Yeah, I figured," he sighed. He pried the dead dragon off of his arm, and I winced at the blood streaming down his arm. "I can still feel it so I don't think he cracked anything but skin and my armor." Yet he smiled despite the pain as he finally gave me his arm and let me work on it. "What are the odds that we run right into a dragon? Of course, considering how the others fought one in those Brecilian Forest Ruins, I suppose it is only fair that we did the same." I suppose, but…

"Actually…" I glanced at the corpse, noting the size distinct lack of wings. "I think that is a drake." Technically speaking, 'dragon' meant 'immature female', though all the variations were called dragons colloquially. "They are commonly found guarding a female dragon's lair." Female dragons matured into 'mature dragons' and then into 'high dragons'. It was the High Dragon that most people thought of when they imagined the word 'dragon'.

"I am so pleased to hear the correct term for the thing that tried to rip my arm off." He sighed, and I took the opportunity to check over his health in general. "I am going to have to get another set of armor."

"Be glad it was your armor and not your arm. It will be fine with a few cleanings and bandagings." I sighed, though, as my magic noted something off with one of his injuries. "Armor off, shirt off. I want to visually check that stomach wound of yours."

"Is it still causing troubles?" Nuada, however, grinned as he did as I asked. "Well, far be it for me to deny a beauty's request to strip down."

"Keep your pants on, please." He simply laughed, setting the armor down and placing his shirt on the pieces. My eyes automatically fell on the scar on his right, perfectly in line with the scar that ran over his right eye. Uldred had really… almost killed him. I felt cold at the thought. "Anything I need to do?" My eyes flicked up to his shoulder, where I noticed… ink? It was like the markings on Zevran's face, ink embedded into the skin. When did he get that? I was not sure how to ask about it. "Layla?" I focused on his face, and my attention was caught by the faint scars on his cheek. I knew he had gotten one from the Tower; he had already had the palest one when we met. How had he gotten it? I think Commander Duncan explained it, once, but… "Have I captivated you?"

"You wish." He laughed, and I felt myself relax slightly. "Sit still." Very carefully, I prodded the area around his stomach wound. It was the first time I had seen it since Lothering, and I unconsciously traced it, noting it was exactly like the scar I had expected to see on my own stomach. I noticed the star-like scars dotting his chest. They looked like arrows, and Alistair had told me, once, they were where he expected scars on his own chest. "…Nuada?"

"Yes?" His voice shook a little. I glanced up worriedly, but he had his eyes closed, and his face was stoic. I couldn't read anything, and that made my heart ache.

"Will you tell me how you got these injuries?" He tensed under my fingertips. "You don't have to. I just…" I wanted to know.

"…After you and Alistair fell unconscious, Flemeth came to save us." He spoke slowly and carefully, eyes still shut. I was more surprised he was actually answering. "You know that part, right?"

"Yes, Morrigan told me."

"I… made a bargain with Flemeth. You and Alistair were in a grave state, so I made one." He opened his eyes, and looked right at me. "The price was blood." It was…? "She used some sort of magic, I know not what, and it gave me your injuries." Did he just say…?! "I had less energies, and I had lost less blood. What would have killed you two would not kill me."

"…Stupid…" I dropped my head, biting back tears. That was what happened. "You just did that… and you were not going to tell us?"

"Well, that had been the plan." His voice was soft. "It wasn't that big of a deal. It was an easy decision."

"This… should have been my injury, though." I pressed my hand against the wound, noticing the scabbing. It felt even. What was causing the 'strangeness' my magic sensed? "This should have been my pain. You hide so much pain already, and you were bearing mine too. You were bearing Alistair's."

"As I said, it was an easy decision." Why did I have to fall in love with someone who didn't care about himself at all? "Are you mad?"

"I'm mad that you hate yourself so much."

"I do not…" He did not finish the sentence. That seemed rather telling to me. "You mentioned the injury was odd?" That he changed the subject also proved telling.

But it also meant that I would not get anything out of him, so I played along. "Yes, I am trying to figure it out." Sighing, I ran my fingers across, trying to figure it out. But it was not my hands that showed me the answer, it was a memory. "…Did we ever take out the threads that Cleon used to stitch up your injury?" I glanced up and saw Nuada's expression blank. "We did not, did we?"

"No, I definitely don't remember that." He smiled sheepishly. "There has been so much going on." We completely forgot.

"It is the threads, then." I sighed. "Okay, I have to remove them. There is no way these can be safe to just leave in your skin."

"I am in your very capable hands."

"I… will have to cut them." I remembered the Fade. I remembered what that 'nurse' had said. "I will have to use a knife." Did she not say that she 'hovered knives' over him? I had no idea why. It made no sense to me. But I also knew asking would be a very, very bad idea.

He tensed under my hand again, but he cupped my chin to bring my face up fully, to look me right in the eye. "I am in your very capable hands, Layla." I heard the hidden words as clearly as if he had screamed him. 'I trust you.' It was the same thing he had told me on the balcony at Redcliffe.

It made me smile. "Then hold still. It will hurt a little."

"All right." He smiled back, and I noticed it was shaky. "So, just hold still."

"You may tell me a story while we work. Tell me how Fergus met Oriana."

"Oh, now that is a story." His shaky smile turned into a grin. "Now, it all started with a rabbit." …This was going to be a ride of a story. Well, it should have us laughing before long. "More specifically, it all started with a rabbit, a fire, and an accidental hostage situation." …I HAD TO HEAR THIS!


After getting the stitches out of Nuada's stomach wound, and I recovered from my brush of death by laughter and my utter shock that Fergus and Oriana had even liked each other, much less courted, married, and had a kid… well, after all that, we continued through the mountain cave and came upon a room filled with books, eggs, and dragonlings. Oh, and Elspeth and Alistair were in the middle of the dragonlings. She was stitching an injury on his arm, and the dragonlings… were as calm as kittens.

"Did you two seriously tame baby dragons?" Nuada immediately deadpanned. Both of them glanced up at us, and gave us smiles. Elspeth went right back to stitching, though. "What in all the holy flames…?"

"I have no idea what happened," Alistair admitted easily. The fact that he did not react to the needle made me think Elspeth had numbed the area up. I had not known she carried numbing herbs? When had she gotten that? "They were growling and yelping and one bit my hand. Then they turned into kittens." Now why would that be? "And now Elspeth is kindly making sure that I can actually use my hand."

"Though, if I had known you would not have been long, I would have waited instead of panicking," Elspeth sighed. I crouched down by them, noting how even the stitches were. "The last time I stitched a wound was after Ostagar."

"I think I need to be teasing you over panicking over such a small thing," Nuada joked, leaning over to watch too. I noticed he kept a wary eye on the dragonlings, but they remained incredibly well behaved. "Let's remember he has stitches in his hand, though. Layla discovered we forgot all about the ones I had, and it is a pain to get them out at that stage."

"Ouch…" Alistair winced before laughing a little. "Well, I guess that goes to show where our priorities are," he noted. "Saving people, killing people, and maybe actually tending to our injuries if we think about it."

"Yeah, no, we are having a reorganization of priorities," I deadpanned. I studied the wound a bit with my magic before nodding. "You should be fine with just the stitches, though we will have to check it frequently. This is your shield hand, right?"

"Yeah, so it isn't as big of a deal. I don't have to hold anything in it." Elspeth tied off the string and carefully wrapped his hand in bandages. "Your hands are really tiny, Elspeth." Well, in comparison to his, that was true. "Sorry, I just noticed."

"That is fine," Elspeth murmured. She tied off the bandage and smiled at him. "I think that is acceptable. But please, next time, let me kick the thing. I know Nuada asked to let you and him show off, but being bit by a dragonling is not the way to do that."

"Aw, but it would have put a scuff on your boots!" Alistair laughed as she frowned. "Regardless, Nuada, what happened to your gauntlet?"

"A drake ate it," Nuada deadpanned. Elspeth gave him a look. "Hey, don't get mad that Alistair and I had the same idea. Great minds think alike!"

"Fools also seldom differ, dearest twin," she retorted instantly, voice as sweet as candy. It made Nuada laugh, and I wondered if this was a little joke between them. "We have to get you another set of armor."

"Yes, yes, I know that already. At least it wasn't a destroyed breastplate this time!" That reminded me of the battle with Uldred. I remembered seeing Uldred attacking, remembered seeing Nuada blocking the wrong arm, remembered all the blood and the sheer raw fear… "Layla?" I tried to smile at him, but I thought it was forced. It felt forced, at least, and he looked concerned. "Hey, what's…?"

Elspeth, however, took my hand and tugged me with her. I went without thinking about it, really, and just focused on taking calming breaths. But the thoughts echoed through my head repeatedly. 'He took my injuries to save me. He took Alistair's injuries to save him.' 'He lost his eye protecting Irving.' 'He was bitten just now, and I knew he had been protecting me.' 'He was always getting hurt, protecting people. He was always sacrificing himself for others.' 'Was it going to kill him? Was he going to die under my hands because I did not have the strength to save him?'

It was really scary, loving someone who did not care for himself at all.

"Layla." Elspeth's voice was soft as she stroked my hair. We were by one of the bookcases. I thought she dragged me here in case I wanted a distraction, instead of talking. "What do you need?" she asked, confirming my suspicions. "Let me help you, if I can."

I glanced over at Alistair and Nuada. The two were talking softly about something I could not hear, and were also playing with the dragonlings. "I think I was just overwhelmed," I whispered, turning my attention back to her. "You already know, do you not? What I feel for…?"

"I have been suspecting, for a while, that you loved Nuada." She kept her voice quiet, and I was so grateful for it. "I think my first thought was worry. Historically speaking, Couslands are a very difficult bunch to love. That my parents were happily married is a bit of a miracle." She grimaced. "That Fergus was also happily married was a shock. None of us expected that." I wondered if the… rather unconventional… first meetings helped with that? "Neither of us are very… healthy. While I had always known, I had never realized how bad it all was until I traveled with everyone."

"Why was that? Is it seriously how you are raised?"

"We are raised to be perfect. That is how all of Fereldan sees the Couslands." Now, she smiled bitterly. "Father had actually been laid up, prior to you all meeting him." What. "He had vomited blood from stomach ulcers." WHAT?! "But no one knew. No one could know."

"Why are we saving the world again?" I simply sighed heavily. I knew the answer to that. It was because we could. It was the right thing to do. It was because, despite all the pain, this world was still worth saving. It always would be. "Still, might I ask a serious question?" I looked her right in the eye. "Will it… is it possible to safely love someone who does not love himself?"

"Yes." She answered without hesitation. "I know because my father hated himself, yet my mother loved him dearly." He did? "Father always was crushed with guilt at surviving White River when others did not. He was keenly aware of his flaws, though his greatest ended up being what killed him."

"If you are talking about how he was kind, kinder than anyone had any right to ask, and that someone took advantage of it, then I do not find that a 'flaw'." She looked startled, actually started. Her eyes were wide and everything, and it had been a long time since I saw her show emotions so visibly. "I think kindness is a strength, and it is a testament to how vile Howe is that he took advantage of it."

"…You…" She smiled softly, shakily. "You are a very strange, but very wonderful, person, Layla." That… was a complement, right? "Regardless, though, yes, it is possible. But, I cannot say it will be an easy road to get there." She shrugged. "I have once heard it said that you cannot love a person without loving yourself. I think it is nonsense, though." I thought that sounded healthy. "Father loved Mother so much he forgot what it was like to hate himself. Father loved us, his children, so much that he forgot." …Oh. That was what she meant. It was not being 'dependent' on love, so much as using it as a reminder, a reminder that even if you did not love yourself, someone did. At least, I thought that was what she was getting at. "Do you feel a bit better?"

"Mm, I think so." I glanced at Alistair and Nuada again, and saw them laughing. "I think… he is worth the work." Elspeth smiled sweetly at that. "Though, I do have another serious question?" I smiled sheepishly at her. "Has he… figured it out?"

"Mmm…" She closed her eyes in thought, and I found it a little hard to breath. "My brother has a habit of assuming the worst." Huh? "Part of it is the tactician in him. He plans for the worst-case scenario. Another part is simply our upbringing. So, the more he wants something, the more he is certain that he will never get it." That sounded so sad. "It can, at times, make him a tad… oblivious. So, no, I don't think he's noticed."

"Oh, that is a…" Wait. "Hold on, are you saying he wants my…?"

She actually laughed at me! It was a quiet laugh, hidden behind her hand, but I heard it! "We would not be having this conversation if I thought otherwise, Layla. I would be doing my level best to steer you away." Oh. Yes, that does make sense. "I know Nuada better than anyone. I always have. So, even if he did notice, the first step will have to be yours. He has had many partners over the years, and he would not want you to think that is solely what he is after." My face flushed, but I smiled a little giddily. "Ah, but do not expect your love to change him or anything. He might change but-"

"But that will be because he is actively trying to change his flaws, and to expect love to be magical and miracle-working is very unhealthy." She looked startled and I felt absolutely gleeful at taking her by surprise for once. "I might be inexperienced in romance, but I did grow up with Wynne."

"That… makes so much sense." She smiled warmly and gently. "I think that is all the warnings I have. But, I am very serious. You will have to be the one to take the first step. He won't."

"Yes…" I sighed. "W-well, perhaps later… when things are… relatively…" Confessing in the middle of a ruin with dragons did not seem like a good idea!

"Take your time." She stroked my hair, and for a brief instance, I was reminded of my mother. "I look forward to having you as a sister-by-marriage, though." I squeaked, face burning, and she actually laughed. "I'm sorry. I had to tease, just a little."

"You can be quite mean, but I guess it's a reason why we love you so." She gave me a confused look and I smiled before changing the subject. This was definitely the time. I knew she would not want to open up as I did. It was easy to give advice, and so much harder to take it. So, it was time for a subject change, and I saw something on the shelf immediately. "Is that… something on the First Blight?"

"You're right!" We exchanged a smile, and happily dived into the books as the boys continued playing with the dragonlings. It was a nice distraction from everything, and maybe we could find a hint! Even if we did not, though, I think I needed the mental break, at least.


Author's Notes: I figured a more light-hearted, for a given value of 'light', chapter would be VERY needed given the previous one. So, have this one! Little in the way of plot, and bunches of call-backs, serious talks, but I hope it was a fun read nonetheless. I think Kolgrim is technically located inside the caverns, buuut it's more fun if we meet him on the mountaintop, so look forward to seeing him later.

Oh, as for Alistair and the dragons? In the Silent Grove comic, it is revealed that the 'Blood of King Calenhad' is needed to revide the dragons slumbering in the Silent Grove temple. In the Until We Sleep comic, Sten reveals that King Calenhad was actually a Reaver, who drank the blood of a 'great dragon', and a measure of the strength he gained was passed down through his descendants. If I recall correctly, in the Silent Grove comic, Alistair actually does challenge a dragon (a High or Great Dragon, can't remember) and it refuses to take the challenge because of the blood.

Basically, he has 'old blood' thanks to Calenhad, and I'm using that here as an excuse to not kill cute baby dragons. Because baby dragons.

Next Chapter – the Anvil with Aiden