"There in the depths of the earth they dwelled.

Spreading their taint as a plague, growing in number

Until they were a multitude.

And together they searched ever deeper

Until they found their prize,

Their God, their betrayer"

Canticle of Threnodies 8:27

Ostagar

They spent the next day tracking the party of Grey Wardens. A party of four left the encampment early in the day, three men and an elf. As they made their way through the forest they were set upon by darkspawn time and time again.

"Curious creatures, these Grey Wardens. What do you make of them Richard?"

"Not much, considering they are supposed to be Grey Wardens they're not very impressive."

They continued to watch the progress of the Wardens from afar. They studied each face and each fighting style. Two of the men were warriors charging with sword and shield and a two handed blade. The third man was a rogue who darted in and out of the shadows. As for the elf she stayed to the back of the party and fired arrow after arrow at the darkspawn. The darkspawn were defeated eventually allowing the party access to the outpost. From their hidden viewpoint they watched the Wardens search the outpost.

Time for some fun

They moved forward and stood at the top of the ramp leading further into the complex; it was Morrigan who started the encounter of.

"Well well, what have we here? Are you a vulture I wonder? A scavenger poking amidst a corpse whose bones were long since cleaned? Or merely an intruder, come into these darkspawn filled wilds of ours in search of easy prey. What say you, hmm? Scavenger or Intruder."

It was the elf that replied. "Neither, we are Grey Wardens. This tower once belonged to us."

"No longer. The wilds have reclaimed what was once theirs. I've watched your progress for some time. 'Where do they go', I wondered, and 'Why are they here?' And now you disturb ashes that none have touched for so long, why is that?"

"Don't answer her she looks Chasind, and that means others may be nearby?" The rogue finally spoke after cowering behind the warriors.

"You fear barbarians will swoop down upon you?"

"Yes, swooping is bad."

It was then that Richard decided to make his presence known; he moved to join Morrigan and bypassed the party of Grey Wardens.

"I said there were others nearby. She's a Witch of the Wilds, she is! She'll turn us into toads!"

"Witch of the Wilds? Such idle fancies, those legends. Have you no minds of your own? You there elf. Tell me your name and I shall tell you mine. Let us be civilized."

"I am Eliza Surana, pleasure to meet you."

"Now that is a civil greeting. You may call me Morrigan and this is Richard. Now shall I guess your purpose? You sought something in that chest, something that is here no longer."

"Here no longer? You stole them didn't you? You're some kind of sneaky witch thief." It was the turn of the dim-witted one to speak.

"How very eloquent. How does one steal from dead men?"

"Quite easily it seems. Those documents are Grey Warden property and I suggest you return them."

"I will not, for 'twas not I who removed them. Invoke a name that means nothing here any longer if you wish; I am not threatened."

"Then who was it who took them?"

"Twas my mother in fact. If you wish we will take you to her. Tis not far from here and you may ask her for your papers if you like. Follow us if it pleases you."

It took several minutes for the party of Grey Wardens to decide on their plan of action, by that time Morrigan and Richard had reached the tree line and were just disappearing out of view. The four Wardens caught up with the apostates and followed in silence as they were led further into the forest.

Flemeth's Hut, the Wilds

The atmosphere changed as soon as they reached the hut in the middle of the woods. The shadows became deeper and the air became cold and charged with magic. Morrigan led them to the front of the house, where she expected them to kneel before Flemeth. Any who didn't were to be forcibly moved. The Grey Wardens were panicking; Ser Jory was crying and babbling like a child. Daveth had his head held high, but you could see the fear racing through him. Alistair was babbling. Yet the elf was the one who brought the eye of Richard, she was calm. There was no fear just calm. They all got to their knees in front of the hut and waited for Morrigan to return with Flemeth.

It didn't take long for Morrigan to come back followed by Flemeth. The Grey Warden Eliza watched with curious eyes as Flemeth was introduced. All she saw was an old woman, there was no threat here. Or so she thought.

"You are Grey Wardens, yet you kneel before someone that you do not know. Is this humility or something else? Something else it is."

"Asha'bellanar!"

"Now there's something I've not heard in a long time. One of the Dalish an unusual companion to Shemlen. It's been a long time since I've seen one of your kind, I've lived in isolation for so long that I'd almost forgotten the beauty of the Dalish. And yet you remember."

"Remember? You're a story, a myth told to children. You don't exist."

"So far the Dalish have fallen. Do you even pray to the same Gods? Or have you fallen to the ways of men and fallen to the Maker."

"We remember who we are Asha'bellanar. We haven't forgotten our lineage."

"Ultimately it doesn't matter; you're a Grey Warden now but then again maybe not. To the matter at hand. I believe you are here for these."

"You kept them, why?"

"Safety, curiosity or ransom. Take your pick, but I hereby give them back to their rightful owner. Make sure Duncan gets them. Morrigan and Richard will take you back to Ostagar."

Ostagar

The Grey Wardens were back at their camp, yet Richard and Morrigan still followed from the forest. In the form of two ravens they perched themselves on a branch directly above the Grey Wardens.

"We're ready Duncan."

"Then let us begin."

The man named Duncan brought forth a silver chalice filled with a deep red liquid and before he offered it to the recruits Alistair spoke.

"Join us, brothers and sisters. Join us in the shadows where we stand vigilant. Join us as we carry the duty that cannot be forsworn. And should you perish, know that your sacrifice will not be forgotten. And that one day we shall join you."

One by one the recruits drank from the chalice. The first to fall was Daveth, he fell to the concoction in the chalice. Next was Ser Jory who cowered out and drew his sword, a quick lunge by Duncan and the man lay dead at their feet. Finally it was the turn of Eliza, she drank deeply and quickly joined the others in the deadly silence of the death.

That was fairly barbaric.

Indeed.

As the ceremony came to an end the two ravens flew off back into the heart of the wilds.