I really like, love and appreciate reviews. There is nothing better than feedback. This is the last of the set up. Stuff begins to happen next chapter.

Chapter Two

The three of us staggered out of our rooms to see our senior fellows gathered around a map.

",,,go ahead of us. Send Georg and Vardna back for some rest. I'm taking the junior Wardens on a side trip to Gavorn Thaig. After that we'll join you."

Sigrun protested "You don't have a scout. All three of them are plate dancers."

"What could happen? I can sense the spawn better than you and the thaig is on this side of the trench. The most we'll see are straggler bands. Which is what are needed. Good morning sers! I trust we all slept well?"

Wonderful. We were serving under a tyrant and a sadist and a morning person. I hated her so much at that moment. The stab of emotion made my head hurt even more. The mage gave a laugh, which also hurt, and walked around the table. Andrus, Anvil, Anvard waggled his fingers and I felt much better. I hadn't been fond of being around one mage, much less two, but I started to reconsider. That he was so good looking didn't hurt either. Gazing at him was very … restful. That was the word, restful. Even the Commander began to look better, but not in that way.

I thought about speaking, decided it would not kill me, and said "Thank you Ser mage. I'm sorry I can't recall your name. Do you have a memory spell in your arsenal? I'm finding my memories of last night vague."

Sigrun spoke. "I'm not surprised. About the only thing our ale has going for it is strength. You all drank your first ones very quickly. It was all downhill from there. You might do as I do and stick to surface drinks or water."

She was improbable. I remember her saying last night she was already dead, which seemed unlikely. For a dead person she was both cheerful and kind. Her advice sounded like a very good idea.

The Commander looked at us and motioned us to join the group.

The mage smirked and said "I am Anders, lovely lady, and I am completely at your service."

That was the name. "I'm Perpetua, but please call me Perry. Thank you." He had the looks. He had a very lame line. He also had the awareness to know that the line was lame. "Surely you can do better than that."

He looked surprised and pleased. "It is early yet. I will devote myself to thinking of better ones, then."

Gervais coughed and said "You wanted to see us, Commander?"

"Who am I to interfere with young love?" she said laughed. She had the most amazing smile. You couldn't help but be swept up in her cheer.

"But to business. These two are going to relieve the terrible twosome at Bownammar. We're going to take a longer route there to check out a report of a small darkspawn presence in one of the lesser thaigs. Once we've dealt with them we'll head directly to Bownammar as well."

"Did Nathaniel tell you why we are here?"

Palin got in the first word "To fight darkspawn, I suppose."

Gervais and I had the same thought "To assist the dwarves?"

"Then he didn't. We've been fighting darkspawn since the first Blight. The dwarves have been fighting them even before that. It's possible that the Blights will stop once the last of the old gods fall, but it's also possible that the darkspawn will simply start tainting high dragons. We're here to find out more about the darkspawn. We do this by striking deep into their territory. We also track down broodmothers, which I know you have never seen, and kill them. That's how we hope to interrupt their breeding."

"Our rules are very simple. Do whatever it takes to kill darkspawn. Never abandon a comrade. Never ever leave a female comrade alive and helpless. Be adults."

"You will be here for two years. The twins have already been here a year, they will be leaving in another year and be replaced by another set of Wardens. Our goal is to help you all be much better at finding, killing and preventing darkspawn. That's what you get out of this."

"Questions?"

Andrus and Sigrun had already shouldered their packs and were at the door. The Commander hugged them both and said "I'll join you shortly. Be careful."

Palin asked "What about personal lives? Is there a curfew?"

She turned and said "No curfew. Your lives are your own. Let me know when you plan to go somewhere and where. Show up on time. And don't make me deal with drama. Other than that, you're on your own. Except today. We're leaving as soon as you get ready."

Gervais asked "How do we get porters?"

"I doubt you could afford any that would be willing to go where we go. You'd best take just what you absolutely need and leave the rest here. It should be safe enough."

The three of us exchanged glances. We had a lot of stuff. I had a lot of stuff. We then went back to our rooms and began winnowing what we had to the simple necessities.

By dint of extreme ruthlessness I found myself looking at one pack. I had a change of clother, two changes of smallclothes, bandages, jerky, water, dried fruits, whetstones, spare daggers, leather strapping, rope and my Ser Cauthrien doll (don't judge!).

To my complete surprise I was the first to pop back out. I could hear the boys arguing about each item, so maybe being the only female was a good thing. The Commander was female, but she didn't seem the girl chat sort of person. Also, I had never really been around elves. We hadn't many servants and the ones we had were all human. The only elves I had ever met were the Dalish, once, and they were scary, and the odd refugee family.

The Commander was seated on a bag of something or other that looked to be very squahy and was reading a small book. I decided being nosy couldn't hurt, leaned slightly and looked at the title. She saw my movement and grinned at my reddening face.

"That's banned by the Chantry."

"I'm almost finished. Would you like to borrow it, later? I have a pretty good collection of banned books. All pretty steamy, I'm afraid."

"I've never read a banned book. I've seen one, but the Sister got to it before I could. I'd love to read it."

She smiled and said "Twenty more pages and it's yours. In fact, I was hoping you could help me."

I blinked. Hard. "I'd be happy to, but how?"

"I grew up in the Circle. I know mages have a certain reputation, but it really boils down to greater informality and a lot of histrionics. I've only been loose amongst the general population for seven years and most of that has been here. I'd love to know just how true to life this book is. It all comes across as rather confining."

"Whatever you want to know, Commander." I was finding it difficult to believe I knew anything she didn't. But discussing relationships, even fictional ones, is always fun.

"Good, that will make for a good conversation on the trip. We could have a contest to see who can make the templar blush the most."

She was a cruel woman. I began to really like her. Gervais was a decent fellow, but he had obviously been raised by the Chantry from an early age.

The men finally emerged from their room. Palin had a very small pack. Gervais was staggering under his.

The Commander looked at him and said, "I'm hoping to make twenty miles a day. Thin it out a bit, please."

Twenty minutes later his pack looked more like mine.

We left the hall, the Commander locked the door, did some sort of finger wave and turned right. A short walk past bored looking guards and we were in the Deep Roads.