Chapter 5

The dungeon entrance was housed in the soldier's barracks. Beth walked through the barracks pleasantly surprised at how much work had gotten done. She nodded at Margaret and Fenton who were working on the bunks. Then she sighed, realizing the amount of work ahead of her to get the keep back into working order. She went down the stairs and grabbed the keys from the desk. Entering the dungeon, she looked the prisoner over. He glared at her, but didn't say anything. He seemed familiar, but she wasn't sure why.

She watched him stand up and eye her distrustfully. "So, you must be the Hero of Ferelden. Aren't you supposed to be ten feet tall, breathing fire?" he asked, sarcastically.

She grimaced at him and answered quietly, "I do not claim the title of Hero. I am however, the current Warden-Commander and your fate rests with me."

"What are you going to do with me?" he asked her.

She looked him over then sighed, "I'm not sure, why are you here?"

He squared his shoulders and looked her straight in the eye. "I am Nathaniel Howe, eldest son of Arl Renden Howe. I came here to find the Hero of Ferelden, the Warden-Commander, the person who killed my father. I mean to have vengeance."

She looked at him and tried to calm the myriad of emotions that went through her. She could see the boy she once loved in the man in front of her, but she could also see a resemblance to the traitor that murdered her family. She hesitated a moment then unlocked the cell door.

"I am the person you are looking for. I will answer all of your questions without hesitation. If you still want to kill me after that, we can duel," she said calmly.

Nate looked in shock at the open cell door. A trick? He stepped out and said, "What is stopping me from killing you right now?"

Faster than he could believe, there was a dagger at his throat. "You don't have a weapon," she stated and lowered her dagger. "Now, let us have a civilized discussion over some food. I'm sure you must be hungry."

Nate was thrown by this woman's calmness. He had just told her he wanted to kill her and now she was leading him to the kitchen. As they walked in, he was amazed at the kitchen's transformation. Just last night it had been a jumbled wreck, now it was clean and the smell of good food hung in the air. Nate sat down and she handed him a bowl of stew and a mug of ale. She sat down across from him with her own mug. No one else was in the kitchen and in the quiet, Nate studied his foe. She had a beautiful, aristocratic face. Her blue eyes held his for a long moment and he had a funny feeling that he knew her from somewhere else.

She watched him gather his thoughts then asked, "What do you want to know?"

He answered, "I have so many questions and how do I trust your answers?"

She smiled sadly and responded, "Do you have a choice?"

Again, Nate was baffled by her calmness. His emotions were churning inside, nothing was making any sense. "When did the Blight start?" he asked.

"About two years ago, King Cailen sent notices to all the Bannorn alerting them that the darkspawn were appearing above ground for the first time in over four hundred years. They were accumulating in the southern most area of the Korcari Wilds and he was going to gather the armies at Ostagar to defeat them before they got any further north."

Nate looked down at his untouched food, thinking about his next question. He looked up and asked, "Was my father and his army at Ostagar?"

"No." It was Beth's turn to look down. She didn't want to tell him who she was yet. She wanted Nate to make up his mind without that information clouding the issue. She looked at him and said, "Highever and Amaranthine were supposed to combine their armies and arrive in Ostagar together. However when the Amaranthine army didn't arrive in Highever at the appointed time, the Teyrn sent his son and Highever's army ahead, while he waited with Arl Howe for Amaranthine's army."

She took a deep breath and continued, "In the middle of the night, Amaranthine's army arrived at Highever and massacred every living being in the castle on Arl Howe's orders."

Nate looked at her in shock. Even though Delilah had told him the same thing, he had hoped it was just a false rumor. "Teyrn Bryce was my father's best friend. Why in Andraste's name, would he attack him?"

"Teyrn Loghain told your father that the Couslands were plotting with Orlais to take over the kingdom and that there was no Blight," she answered.

Nate stood and began to pace. "Teyrn Bryce loved Ferelden as much as my father. It must have been true or else my father wouldn't have acted on it. My father wouldn't just slaughter women and children though. You must have that information wrong."

"Highever Castle was burnt to the ground. There were no survivors." Beth looked down into her mug, took a drink and said sadly, "A lot happened over these last eighteen months that I never would have believed myself if I hadn't been there." She took another drink watching as Nate calm himself and sat back down.

"What happened at Ostagar?" he finally asked.

"The darkspawn attacked and Loghain quit the field leaving King Cailen and the armies of Ferelden to be massacred," she said quietly.

Nate hesitated trying to make sense of everything this woman had told him. It matched Delilah's version of the story, so it must be the truth. He struggled with his inner turmoil. He had been so resolved to hate his father's killer, but as he studied the woman sitting across from him, he was torn. She looked so sad and tired, she had obviously been through a lot. She could have very easily killed him, but she was trusting him to make a fair decision.

"What are you going to do with me now?" Nate asked.

"I have a problem," she said, "there are still darkspawn attacking the surface. Once the Archdemon was killed, they should have scattered and headed for the Deep Roads, but for some reason, here in Amaranthine, they are organized and still fighting." She studied his face for a moment, then said, "I am conscripting you as a Grey Warden and you can work with me to find the cause of this darkspawn riddle as well as clear your family's name."

"What? You can't just make me a Warden. What if I don't want to be one? Besides, how could you trust me, when I want you dead?" he shouted at her in surprise.

Beth sighed, "You love Ferelden. You wouldn't have come back if you didn't. I need more Wardens, Ferelden, only has me right now, and you look like you can fight. You can turn all your rage onto the darkspawn...vengeance isn't all it's cracked up to be."

He stared at her. The resolution in her eyes was evident. If he didn't hate her so much, he might have been attracted to her.

Beth drank the last of her ale. "Your horse is in the stables, your weapons are still in the dungeon, and you are free to go wherever you like. I'm afraid that most of your family's personal belongings have either been stolen or destroyed, but you are welcome to take anything you find. Report to the main hall at sundown." She stood and left the room.

He sat there confused. He had fully expected to be dead, but instead he was free. He left the kitchen and began wandering through his former home.

...

Margaret swept the last of the rubble out of the barracks, looked around and breathed a sigh of relief. It felt good to be doing something productive. She put the broom in the supply closet and left the barracks. She wasn't sure what she was going to do next, but she wanted to be outside and breathing fresh air. She walked toward the front of the Keep, no set destination in mind, when she heard a shout.

"Hello in the Keep!" a woman called.

Margaret hurried to the main gate and opened it to find Ser Cauthrien, the Queen's personal Knight, waiting with a group of soldiers.

"Ser Cauthrien!" Margaret exclaimed. "What brings you here?"

"The Queen sent me to escort these Warden recruits and to check on the status of the Keep," she replied, looking around. "It looks like there was a battle here, where's the Warden-Commander?"

"The Keep was attacked by darkspawn. The Commander is in the kitchen, I'll go get her if you could wait here," Margaret replied.

As Margaret started for the kitchen door, Varel and Anders exited from the main hall door.

"We heard shouting, what's going on?" Varel asked.

"Ser Cauthrien has brought some recruits and wants to see the Commander," Margaret replied.

The door to the kitchen opened and Beth stepped out. She looked around and saw the group of soldiers in the courtyard and walked over. Margaret, Varel and Anders followed.

"Warden-Commander." Ser Cauthrien said, holding herself stiffly. "These soldiers are volunteers who wish to become Grey Wardens. The Queen would also like a report on your situation here."

"I am grateful for the recruits," Beth said, an edge to her voice, "I only arrived last evening, but the keep was under attack. It appears that all of the Grey Wardens from Orlais have been killed or are missing. We have a few survivors, but will need to hire more staff."

"How is it that you were able to defeat the darkspawn when a dozen Grey Wardens could not?" Ser Cauthrien's asked, barely able to contain her contempt.

"Hey!" Anders shouted, "Don't talk to her that way! I saw her fight those darkspawn and save the Senaschel!"

Ser Cauthrien looked at Anders and drew her sword, "You! You are under arrest!"

Beth stepped between them, "On what charge?" she demanded.

"He is a wanted apostate and has a variety of charges against him!" Ser Cauthrien answered taking a step toward Anders.

"You will not take him!" Beth said, taking a step toward Cauthrien. "He is a Warden recruit and all charges will be dropped!" Beth glared at Cauthrien.

"You can't do this!" Cauthrien spat, "He is a criminal and cannot hide in the ranks of the Grey Wardens."

"I have the power to conscript or accept anyone I chose to my ranks. Once I have declared that person a Grey Warden, their past is forgotten." Beth stood defiantly in front of Cauthrien.

Margaret watched the exchange in surprise. The Commander was standing up to one of the most powerful knights in the Queen's army and for what...an apostate she barely knew.

Nate had heard the raised voices and as he exited the Keep toward the courtyard, he was surprised to see the Commander standing defiantly in front of a fully armored knight. Although she was a head shorter than the knight, it was obvious that she was in charge.

Ser Cauthrien glared at Beth but took a step back. Without breaking the stare, she said, "Margaret, are you ready to leave?"

Margaret looked at the two women and then surprising herself, she said, "No. I am going to become a Grey Warden, if the Commander will accept me." She looked at Beth, questioningly.

"You are a strong warrior, I would be honored to have you in our ranks." Beth replied.

"Fine." Ser Cauthrien said turning to leave. "I will give the Queen your status report."

Anders watched as Ser Cauthrien marched through the gate. As the gate closed, he turned to Beth, "Why did you stand up for me?" he asked, "Did my charming good looks win you over?"

Beth looked at Anders and laughed softly, "Not quite, and if you didn't notice, I've conscripted you as a Grey Warden," she paused and looked at the group of soldiers. "Margaret, if you could please show these recruits to the barracks and then give them a tour of the Keep, I would appreciate it."

"Certainly, Commander," Margaret replied, "Follow me," and she motioned for the soldiers to follow her.

"How are you feeling, Senaschel?" Beth asked Varel.

"I'm much better, thanks to Anders' healing," he replied, "I'm going to straighten my office and make sure our treasury is still intact."

Beth nodded as Varel headed towards the main hall.

"I'm sure you two can find something to do," Beth said and followed Varel.

Nate looked at Anders and held out his hand, "I'm Nate. I've also been conscripted."

Anders shook Nate's hand, "Anders. I still don't understand why she did that."

Nate shrugged, "I'm going to wander the Keep and see what I can do to help repair."

"If you see any potions or other medical type supplies, bring them to the ballroom. I'm converting that into an infirmary," Anders said and left the courtyard.

Nate stood thinking about all that had happened. He was just as unsure about this Commander as before. However, the feeling that she was someone he should know kept haunting him.