Holy moly. This is a large chappie to make up for the wait. Shout out to If I Can Be for following this tale. Very special tanks to Kris, fifespice, and YunikuRebekit for kind reviews, and Alex for stealing my computer to read it. Enjoy!

Chapter 6: Proving with her Voice

Aela awoke with a start. The first thing she did was touch her throat. When she realized she was fine, she sat up and looked around. She was surprised to see she was no longer on the river bank, but on a tattered blanket among the rest of her party. Sten was on his side facing the other direction, Alistair was on his side with his hand resting on his sword, and Morrigan faced the sky with an arm over her eyes. Duckling was absolutely crude, laying on his back with his legs spread in every direction, tongue lolling.

Leliana was next to her staring at the embers smouldering in a fire.

"Sten taught us a way to hide the smoke," she said quietly, "so I thought a fire would be safe."

Aela scratched the back of her head and pursed her lips. Her eyes felt swollen, but she was relaxed. "I slept too well," she noted.

"I knew you were upset… I wasn't sure how well you'd sleep and well… you've already done a lot for me so I wanted to give back."

At first, Aela wanted to dissuade Leliana from doing that. She didn't like being able to be sung to sleep and left vulnerable. But the idea intrigued her.

"You need to teach me how to do that," she said. Leliana laughed.

"The rest of you were out like a candle," she giggled. "Sten fell like a log and Alistair fell over like towels stacked too high. Morrigan was a bit tricky, but she dozed off near the end."

Aela smiled. "And Duckling?"

"He was already asleep!"

The two of them laughed loudly, and Alistair stirred. He grumbled and opened his eyes. "Laughter isn't what I thought I'd wake up to…"

"I think that's a good thing," Leliana said. Soon, Sten, Morrigan, and Duckling were awake and on their sore feet. They looked Aela, who pulled out the treaties.

"We're already near the western mountains, so we'll settle the Orzammar treaty first."

"Why go all the way there instead of turn around to Redcliffe?" Leliana asked.

"Because I don't want surface people seeing me for a while. I think time in Orzammar would help some people – bad people – forget about Alistair and me."

Leliana gave an understanding nod.

"I don't think they could easily forget if Loghain is still as good with persuading and convincing people as he was in Maric's rule," Alistair countered. "But you're right. It makes sense."

So it was settled. As they walked, Leliana caught up with Aela and asked her about hiding in Orzammar.

"I don't want Howe knowing I didn't burn," Aela replied quietly. "It's simpler to let him think Highever is his."

"But you'll never get it back if you pretend to be dead forever," Leliana said.

"I never said forever."

"The Maker teaches us that -"

Aela gave Leliana a look. "No preaching. I said I didn't like that. Arl Rendon Howe slaughtered my family in cold blood, and I will rip him apart, limb from limb, face from skull, before I go back into the Fade. Your Maker can stay out of that, just as he did when my family burned."

They continued on the northern road towards the mountains. For two days they hiked and faced little to no one save for travelling traders and common folk. When they did see someone approach, they stepped off the road into the cover of trees and bushes.

After those two days, they came to a cross-road. Aela paused and looked down the road and glared. It felt sinister and cold, evil. It was not on the way to Orzammar, but it made her wonder. It did not look like an intentional path, but maybe a horse trail. She did not like the feeling it gave her and was forced to move on, thinking it was mere superstition.

When they finally passed through the mountains and made it into the small village outside the dwarven fortress, the party took advantage of the kiosks. It was then they knew something was very wrong.

"I'm so happy to see you," one shopkeeper said. "No one has come from Orzammar to trade in weeks. The sodding Assembly won't let anyone in or out."

"Why?" Aela asked.

"King Aeducan passed to the stone a month ago and the Assembly is locked between blood and oath when it comes to the successor."

Aela didn't like the thought and left. Leliana met her with a piece of parchment in her hand. She pulled her aside.

"Aela, look at this…"

She opened the folded parchment and handed it to her. It was a 'missing' poster of sorts, and upon it was a bad sketch of someone terribly familiar. Under it were the words: 'Maelana Cousland'.

It was Aela.

She almost screamed as she looked at the sketch of herself, her hair impossibly long and draped over a gentle and clear face. She was almost unrecognizable now, and it looked like Morrigan had plucked it off a stand to hide it from prying eyes.

"Someone thinks you're alive... it's you," she said. Aela's mouth was dry. She folded the parchment and put it under her armour.

"Not anymore," she replied stiffly. "Who had this?"

"A vendor said someone from Highever handed these out in attempt to thwart Art Rendon Howe's attempt at securing those lands. The shopkeeper said he's convinced you did not perish in the fire. He has since gone south."

"Who?" she immediately asked.

"He didn't get a name. He said he was a knight under your house."

"Ser Gilmore!" Aela gasped. Leliana raised an eyebrow. Aela's heart was racing, so she tried to contain herself. "Well, there are many knights that served my family."

She looked at the parchment for a while, running her dirty thumb over the cheap ink press of her face. The sketch was a copy of her on her eighteenth birthday, just two moons ago. Her face was delicate and graceful. She had a small smile on her lips and her hair spilled down her back like a silver waterfall. Of course, there were no colours accompanying the sketch, but Aela loved the drawing. Now, it worried her.

She nodded and gave Leliana look as she shoved the parchment under her armour. "Keep this to yourself," she said. Leliana bowed her head and they continued to the doors to Orzammar. They took caution when they found Loghain's guards arguing with the gatekeeper.

"King Loghain has demanded the dwarves' allegiance!" the guard barked.

The gatekeeper yawned. "And my answer remains the same. No."

"But King Loghain –"

"Is that what they're calling him now?" Alistair interrupted. "Funny, last I checked, King Cailan's body was still warm."

The guard's face went bright red. "You!" he hissed. "You are the Grey Wardens Loghain has a bounty for!"

"Yes, we know, thank you," Aela said with a wave. She turned to the gatekeeper and gave him the treaty papers. "We require entrance to speak with the Assembly."

"TREASON!" the guard bellowed.

"Actually, these are papers, and you are an idiot," Aela muttered. Alistair laughed and Morrigan smiled. The guard put his hand to his sword.

Suddenly, as if she could tell what his next move was, Aela was first and she unsheathed her dagger from her back and slashed the guard across the cheek. He stumbled back and Aela glared at him. The soldier put his fingers to his bleeding cheek. Leliana scoffed.

"I see a pattern forming," she said with a laugh. "Are you planning to mark all your enemies with that?"

"I guess I am."

The soldier's voice reached higher octaves as he became more hysterical. "You will PAY for this!"

"Sten," Aela sneered, "tear his arms off?"

The Qunari took one step before the soldiers scrambled back.

"I am not in the mood for this, coward," Aela breathed. "There are three of you and six of us, so I suggest you run to Loghain with a message instead of not at all."

The soldier's head almost popped off from his anger, but he bowed his head and spat through gritted teeth. "What would you have me say?" he asked, trembling with rage.

"Just show him your face," was the reply. "Another of your men bears the same mark, and so will anyone I choose to mark. Soon, that mark will remind everyone of my name, my cause, my quest. I am Aela of the Grey Wardens. Remember that."

The soldier left the platform to the door with a swish of his over-embellished cape. Alistair clasped his hand over Aela's arm and gave her a wink. "You're getting your scary voice."

"Boo."

Aela sheathed Ripper. She gave that name to Duncan's dagger. Fitting, she thought. Duncan ripped her from her old life and then this new life ripped Duncan away in turn. That, and it was good at ripping open cheeks for Aela's own crazed amusement. She turned to the gatekeeper again.

"Thanks for getting that rotten surface-shithead off my doorstep, friend," he said. Aela was still not used to harsher language, but she nodded. "Alright. I'll let you in. But be warned, you probably won't find what you need."

The gatekeeper was right. The Assembly was under lockdown, and with no king to supply Aela an army, she was left to pace through the fortress. Dust Town was first. It was obvious that this was the slum of Orzammar, and Aela had a hard time accepting it. She hated seeing people like this…

The dwarves within Dust Town all had disgusting and misshapen brands upon their cheeks. Aela flinched and thought of her own cheek, and thankfully that had healed with Flemeth's help. These unfortunate dwarves obviously let these brands get infected, and some huddled in corners covering their faces, freshly marked and freshly stripped of their titles – their caste – and all their rights to live with dignity.

Anyone not cowering in fear of the party stood confrontationally towards them. It was then Aela and the gang decided it was time to leave.

The Commons offered little help, too. They heard gossip around town, and soon it was known that King Aeducan's son, Prince Bhelen, was meant to be successor, as it was custom on the surface. But there was word that King Aeducan's right hand, Lord Harrowmont, was also in consideration due to Aeducan's wishes. It was all very confusing and frustrating for the party, who needed an army, and they needed it now.

Aela finished up with a lyrium-laced shopkeeper and pocketed her health poultices. She only had three now, and that worried her, since she had five soldiers under her care. She stepped back and faced her party. Alistair was fanning himself with his hand, the heat from the magma below stifling everyone, it seemed.

"We should try the Diamond Quarter," he panted. "We can get answers from the nobles themselves better than the casteless and the insane."

Aela tried to give him a look to quiet him as the jittery shopkeeper was right behind her, mumbling about sandwiches and nightmares. "Come on," she said quietly. Her spirits were down, and she hated the feeling of being trapped in. She had this feel that the ceiling would cave in from above, and she gulped.

They missed the doorway to Diamond Quarter, however.

"I think… we may have just gotten lost," Leliana quipped. Morrigan scoffed at her.

"Tis only a detour," Morrigan sighed, although annoyed with her sore feet and the scorching air. "Truly, if we were in danger, we'd turn around and walk five minutes back into the hustle bustle."

"It's too hot back there," Alistair complained. Aela agreed. She was sweating uncomfortably under her leathers and the fur she pilfered off an unfortunate frozen soldier on their way to Frostback Mountain. She wiped her brow with the back of her hand and blinked away her dizziness.

The turned a corner and saw a group of dwarven soldiers talking to each other, blocking the rest of the road. "Oi, hold!" one bellowed formally. The party stopped. "No one is going into the Deep Roads! Not until the Assembly has been sorted."

Aela wrinkled her nose and blinked. The Deep Roads. She wasn't entirely familiar with them.

"Would there be any other shops beyond you by any chance?" she asked innocently. She wanted more health poultices.

One of the guards snorted. "If there is one, he's a sodding fool. Lady, the Deep Roads is where your darkspawn, well… spawn. The older thaigs – other household names and cities – have all fallen to their filth. No one goes there without permission or a death wish."

The party looked at each other. Then Aela sighed. "We just need to talk to a king. A queen. Someone wearing a crown."

She received another snort. "You'd have better luck breaking Orzammar's roof!" he laughed. "Until Harrowmont and Bhelen settle this stupid spat of theirs, no one is talking to a king. Because we don't have one. Wanna be useful? Go help them pick! And pray they don't send you here."

Soon enough, they were entering the Diamond Quarter. Aela had had enough of waiting for answers. She didn't want to spend another night at Tapsters Tavern doing nothing. She itched for advancement. That, and the open air. The sooner she was done, the better.

They trudged into the Diamond Quarter, Aela leading the way, and Alistair held the rear. Leliana was in front of him when he pulled her back.

"Leliana, you must be a good judge of character," he whispered. Leliana raised an eyebrow. "Does Aela seem a bit... different to you?"

"Not all of us come out of a can, Alistair. We are all different."

Alistair frowned. "No, I mean... look at her. We get into the Diamond Quarter and she just... has this way of carrying herself suddenly. Like, look at how straight her back is and how formal she sounds when she asks who to see."

"She's only trying to play on their level. It's a trick we bards use," Leliana said. "Even I can make myself look however I want. Princess, prostitute, whatever I need to do."

Alistair chuckled. "I find that hard to believe."

"Oi, whatchu fink is 'ard to believe, eh?" Leliana slurred loudly, slouching her shoulders and wrinkling her nostril in a way that made her look sickly. "I ain't pre'y enough fer yah?"

His eyes widened and Sten even looked over his shoulder. Morrigan snorted as Alistair nodded in defeat with a sportsmanlike laugh. Leliana returned to her normal gentle self.

"The idea is to fool people into thinking you're something when you're really nothing. Aela is just a woman who knows how to walk into a room and make people notice."

He looked at Aela's legs then and looked away quickly. Modesty, he reminded himself. Aela was pointed in the direction of Lord Harrowmont's estate, surely from a biased noble, and she ascended the steps into the house, leaving Duckling outside with Sten, who had been growing fond of the beast as much as a Qunari could. Alistair, Morrigan, Leliana, and Aela stood in the foyer, where Harrowmont's butler stood, eyes squinted.

"The lord is not taking visitors," the butler squeaked. "Please exit from where you entered."

Behind him, Harrowmont stood, looking into a fire. Aela bit her lip. "We need someone to honour our treaty. We are the Grey Wardens of Ferelden, we would have your promise."

Harrowmont turned his body slightly to glance at Aela through grey eyelashes. "Grey Wardens…" he murmured. "So… it is true. Leave us."

The butler bowed and left the room. Harrowmont faced Aela fully and looked up at her.

"Ah. A man, three women… and where is Duncan?"

Alistair felt as if his stomach had been punched. He shifted his weight and he felt a hand enter his to hold it. Gentle fingers entwined with his coarse hand. Aela gave his hand a squeeze, something for him to focus on.

"Duncan fell at the battle of Ostagar. Maker preserve him," she said.

Lord Harrowmont nodded and pursed his lips beneath his braided beard. "I would have hoped to see him before he went into the Deep Roads, like his fellow senior Wardens. The King Aeducan and he conversed in private about allying against a possible Blight, but he was very ill, and very weak. The king passed a week later. You were there, my boy."

Alistair swallowed. "Yes. And we need that possibility solidified."

He was squeezing Aela's hand so hard, she winced. He needed to be strong. But Harrowmont sighed. "If I were king, then I could grant you all you desire. But until I am, that will not happen."

"How can we help?" Alistair asked.

Harrowmont looked at Alistair and the party with a moment of thought and stepped closer. "You look like an exceptional set of fighters… if you were to go to the Proving Grounds and fight in my honour, and if the ancestors favoured it, then the Assembly would notice. Grey Wardens are notable people."

"Why should we fight in your honour?" Aela asked bravely. Her hand was crushed again.

"A fair question… Prince Bhelen is a good man, albeit radical and spontaneous. His… reforms include opening up trade with the surface world and such, but that is against all the ancestors wish. Tradition is how we live. It's how we survive."

Aela nodded. "I am in no place to change tradition. Fine, we will go fight in your honour."

"While you're at it, look for Baizyl and Gwiddon. They said they would fight in my honour, and I have heard no word from them."

They left the estate and Morrigan smiled at Aela. "Tis a brisk decision to side with one man without knowing the other."

"We have no time to bargain and weigh our options. Harrowmont will give us an army, and that's all I care about."

They went to the Proving Grounds and were immediately burdened with the feeling of scrutiny. Glares and snorts and cackles sounded around them from every dark corner from dwarves hungry for blood. Aela was too hot, too stifled to care. Leliana was the one who found the Proving Master, who found Gwiddon and Baizyl, and Leliana provided the information to Aela.

"Gwiddon simply needs some honeyed words, but Baizyl is in a very harsh situation," Leliana whispered the Aela, who rubbed her hand over her sweaty eyes. "He says he has been blackmailed into dropping from the Proving. Love letters from him to a married woman are in another fighter's hands. Myaja, that fighter in the back corner, has the key. If we were to get it –"

"We have no time," Aela interrupted. "Letters to a married woman or no, we need to get this treaty honoured."

She wavered and Alistair weakly steadied her. "It's hot. Too hot. Maker's breath, how do you guys stand the heat of this place?"

"I am hiding my emotions," Sten said. Leliana smiled a little.

"Orlais is hot, and I am used to it. Morrigan probably can't feel the heat because if she did, her magic would harm her. You, Duckling, and Aela are Fereldans, unaccustomed to this climate."

Aela waved a hand and stepped past Leliana. "Stay there," she said. She met the Proving Master.

"We wish to fight for Harrowmont," she said bluntly before her party could hear.

"Ah, so Harrowmont finally has a fighter, eh? Just you then?"

"I have five of us, and my mabari."

The Proving Master shook his head. "One, or none. This is a dwarven tradition, so only one human allowed. No others, and no mutts."

Aela, too delirious and impatient to argue, nodded. "Then let's go."

"The fight's been late," he said, rubbing his hands together. "Seweryn!" he barked to a dwarven warrior tightening his shield around his arm. "Looks like there's gonna be a fight after all! You're up against…"

"Aela, my name is Aela."

Alistair almost leapt out of his skin and shoved his way to Aela. "Wait!" he sneered. He seized Aela, who jumped and frowned. "You're fighting? Alone?!"

"I'm going in there to secure our treaties," she said simply. "I'll be fine."

"You won't! You have only had a sword in hand for a fortnight, less even! These dwarves are skilled fighters, years under their belts."

"I will not subject anyone else to my decisions," she replied as the Proving Master opened the gate for her.

"You are being foolish," Morrigan hissed. "You are not invincible, and my own mother can't save you this time."

"You make decisions as if you were an imekari. A child," Sten grumbled.

"I seek honour and safety for my people, Sten," Aela replied. "Surely, a Qunari man would understand."

Alistair reached for her hand and held it. "This is ludicrous! You're too warm, too confused to see reason!"

"Let me go, Alistair."

She wrenched her arm free as the Proving Master shuffled her away into the first gates. The rest of her party flapped about and argued before pressing themselves against the gate. Aela was already in the arena in front of Seweryn, listening to the Proving Master.

"The first fighter to disarm the other wins the round, death is optional. Ancestors favour the rightful heir!"

"I'm going to tear you apart," Seweryn laughed. Aela pulled Biter and Ripper from their sheathes and squeezed. She tangled her fingers in the laces around Biter's pommel and glared. Time seemed to pause for a moment, the heat of the crowded room bearing down on her like a noose.

The next thing she knew, Seweryn swung his sword at her. She ripped herself out of the way, the blade barely grazing her breast and causing no damage. She lost her balance and fell back, but she rolled back onto her feet before he could get another swing at her.

But the moment she made it back onto her feet, Seweryn bashed his shield into her. The upper rim of the large shield cracked her nose. She staggered back, but did not fall. Instead, she took the hit and pushed back, blood dripping from her face. She threw her whole body weight into him and waited the split-second it took for him to shove back before she leapt out of the way. Seweryn lurched forward and fell to a knee, leaving Aela to the advantage of slashing at him with Ripper. She clipped the back of his thigh.

But the heat was stifling. She almost vomited from all the movement. She spat blood out of her mouth and wiped her nose. Her scar throbbed under the pressure around her.

"His sword!" Alistiar cried from the gate. "Get his sword!"

Seweryn twisted back to his feet, shrugging off the leg wound. Their swords connected, and she sent Ripper crashing into his shield. She heard her mother's voice in her head about stealth and wit in combat. She tried to remember everything as Seweryn hacked his sword against hers.

Aela pulled away and dodged another swing, bending back so Seweryn's reach missed her face. He growled and jumped for her, and she stepped out of the way. Time seemed to slow as Seweryn flew through the air. Aela lunged with Biter and Ripper together, two blades, and caught Seweryn's blade between them. Aela spun around and twisted the sword out of Seweryn's grip, hurling the weapon to the edge of the arena.

She thrust her sword towards her opponent's face and caught her breath while he froze. The crowd had mixed sounds of cheers and disgust as Seweryn made it to his feet and stormed off the sand. Aela stumbled towards the gate, but was not allowed back in.

Leliana reached through the bars and held her bleeding face. "That was brilliant," she said breathlessly.

"That was close," Alistair countered. "Proving Master, let her in!"

"The winner stays in the arena for her next opponent!"

Alistair grunted in frustration. Sten thrust a canteen through the bars. "Drink."

Aela took the water and gagged down the stale and vile contents before giving back the empty container. "Sten, please go get more. Leliana, go sneak around and find out who is next. Morrigan, if you can find any medicine, please find it."

The party members all left to their charges while Alistair stared at Aela.

"Do you realize the mistake you could be making?" he asked, reaching through the bars to wipe her face. "You can die out there."

"I have lost so much, Alistair," Aela murmured. "You don't know how much I've lost. This makes me feel like I'm helping."

"Just being a Grey Warden helps. Whatever you have been through is no reason to act without thought!"

"You don't understand. And that's why you don't know me, and won't know me. Because you will never understand the things I do to others is so I don't do it to myself."

She didn't wait for Leliana to come back to tell her about her next opponent. Instead, she left the gate with a lump in her throat and a throbbing face. But when she saw two fighters instead of one, her spirits shifted.

Myaja and Lucjan, the Proving Master announced, were a deadly fighting pair. One never fought without the other and both had different skill sets. Myaja banged her sword against her shield and Lucjan ran his pair of blades together. The sound of banging and scraping made Aela's knees go weak.

Darkspawn were easy to kill once you killed a few of them, but these were strategists. They had a clear eye and no injuries like Aela. "You alright there, little girl?" Myaja cackled. "You look a little squeamish."

Aela didn't say anything, but gave her one of those smiles her father disapproved of if she did something negative. It hid the fear she felt, the uncertainty. This was a bad idea. But when Lucjan swung for one side and Myaja the other, Aela's arms moved faster than she thought. Biter blocked Myaja and Ripper blocked Lucjan. Arms outstretched, Aela twirled to escape the pressure.

She spat blood and faced them again. Myaja shrugged. "Good move. Shit footwork, though."

"She ain't no dancer," Lucjan growled. "And she won't be when we're done."

Myaja laughed and suddenly, hurled her shield at Aela's chest. It spun as a heavy red steel disc and slammed into Aela's stomach. She felt back and felt something tear, although she did not know what, and rolled twice on the sand. Ripper flew from her grip, and the crowd cheered.

"Aela!" Leliana cried. "Get up!"

Aela tried to, but the slightest pressure on her belly made her cry out. Something ruptured. The crowd cheered with every cry she made.

"She's got one blade left yet!" Myaja cackled. "Lucjan, show her how to wield two blades."

Aela made it to her hands and knees, and Alistair banged against the gate. "Let me in!" he yelled. Leliana pulled him back. "She's going to get herself killed!"

Legs shaking and abdomen throbbing, Aela raised Biter just in time to block Lucjan. Lucjan stumbled back from the sudden contact, and Aela lunged forward, screaming in pain, burying Biter into Lucjan's gut. His air left his lungs in one breath and his blades fell from his limp fingers. He fell to his knees as Aela heaved Biter back and fell to her own knees, her belly stiffening.

"LUCJAN!" Myaja screamed. "You bitch!" She sprinted to Aela and smashed the pommel of her sword over her face. She saw stars and fell into the sand, her face bleeding numbly into the dirt. Myaja kicked her over and Aela coughed weakly. Blood poured out of her mouth, not from an external wound, but one very internal. She couldn't breathe.

Myaja straddled her and raised her blade. She cracked the pommel over Aela's head again.

"AELA!" Alistair screamed. Her fingers uncurled around Biter's handle, but the fight continued.

"Let go of your fucking sword, you whore," Myaja sneered. The laces from her gown held Biter in her hand. She shook her head in defiance, choking on the fluid entering her mouth.

"LET GO!"

"No…"

"LET GO!"

"Kiss… my… ass."

Aela smiled with red teeth before she grabbed Myaja's arm. She sank her teeth into Myaja's fighting wrist and held on. Myaja howled as Aela's teeth sank into the flesh between Myaja's glove and elbow guard. The sound of a blade hitting the ground sounded like angels as Myaja jumped back, empty-handed. Aela had won.

Myaja hauled Lucjan off the sand to the healer while Aela crawled to the gates. Alistair was reaching through the bars, Morrigan covering her mouth and Leliana's brow tense. Sten wasn't watching anymore and Duckling pawed frantically at the gate's hinges. Aela grabbed Alistair's hands and he dragged her up against the gate. Leliana force-fed her a poultice and Alistair pressed a hand to her stomach.

"Something burst. We have to get her out of here."

Aela choked and coughed another large quantity of blood onto the gate. "How many more?"

"Half way there. You have a Silent Sister next. Aim for her face. Then you have… more."

"Andraste be praised."

Alistair held onto Aela's face and gave her a shake. "Don't give up, you hear me? You can't leave me here."

"Yes, don't leave me with Alistair, dear," Morrigan said in response. Aela chuckled and groaned in pain. Aela rested a hand on Duckling's head, the poultice giving her miracle energy. She used the gate to pull herself up and she tied the laces around her wrist to keep Biter close. She left the gate and spat out a mouthful of blood before Hanashan, the Silent Sister, walked into the arena. She bowed to Aela and pulled a massive great sword into her grip.

Aela grabbed Ripper out of the sand and gritted her teeth. There were no words spoken when Hanashan swung.

Immediately, Aela could see she moved slowly, encumbered by the gigantic weapon she carried, so Aela did her best to see each move and avoid every blow. It was far easier to swing at Hanashan instead of Myaja and Lucjan. So when Aela saw an opening, she took it. Hanashan was soon covered in small cuts, but already, the poultice was wearing off. Aela's vision wavered and she fell to one knee, blood suffocating her. Whatever had ruptured, it was infecting her body. She almost vomited, and she looked up at Hanashan, blood overflowing through her teeth.

Hanashan stopped mid-swing, suddenly terrified. Aela blinked as her neck grew wet.

Aela didn't know what else to do, she she breathed deeply and spat all over Hanashan's face. She cringed and flapped one hand about while Aela nicked her other hand. The sword fell and the round was over. Aela realized if Hanashan had her tongue ripped out, the sight of it would make her uneasy. One more to go.

She had no energy to return to the gate. She stayed on one knee and waited for her final opponent. When she saw four enter full of anger and determination, Aela almost threw her swords to the ground in surrender. But she wasn't allowed to. Her entire party screamed at the Proving Master, who did not budge when it came to the rules.

"If you can do something from here, then be my guest. But she accepted a solo fight against whoever wanted a fight," he said bluntly.

"No, you refused her a partner!" Alistair spat. Aela, meanwhile, stumbled to her feet. She wasn't entirely religious, but she caught herself praying when Piotin Aeducan's henchman and right-hand soaked in the applause from the crowd.

Leliana pressed herself into the gate. "She's not going to make this one."

"What do we do?" Morrigan hissed. Alistair looked at her up and down and glared.

"I have an idea."

Aela held her stomach and raised Biter to the posse of dwarven soldiers. She knew this was impossible. She needed a miracle.

"FOR BHELEN!" Piotin roared. His henchman were first, and Aela braced herself. But they stopped running. Instead, they both forced themselves to halt as a creature skittered towards them. It looked like a mouse, and it leapt onto a henchman's face and tore open his lip. He screamed and dropped his sword to swat away the rodent. Aela stared as the other henchman tried to pull it away. The mouse turned away and jumped down the armour of the second henchman.

He squealed and yanked at his heavy chest plate. He dropped his own weapons and the two henchman were forced to exit the arena shamefully.

"You sods," Piotin spat. The mouse meanwhile crawled up Aela's leg. She saw its yellow eyes and immediately knew.

"This was Alistair's idea, wasn't it?"

Morrigan sneezed on her and scurried off. On the sidelines, Leliana opened her arms and her mouth, and sang loudly. It wasn't terribly pleasant, but the song seemed to physically wrap around Aela's arms, forcing them to move. She blocked Piotin's right-hand man and Leliana made her move so fast that it was all a blur. Leliana was ruthless and Aela forced Ripper and Biter into his mouth, killing him instantly.

Piotin screamed and Leliana was spent. Aela shoved the right-hand's body away from her to face Piotin, alone and without aid. The maul he held, a massive great hammer, made a horrifying whoosing sound as it grazed past her face.

Her small blades were no match for one well-aimed blow from the maul, and they were knocked to the side to give Piotin a massive opening. He swung the hammer over and around, smashing it into Aela's gut. She crashed into the side of the arena.

Instead of finishing the round, Piotin grabbed Aela by the hair and dragged her into the middle of the arena.

"This is what happens when you buy your allegiance, Harrowmont! You fail! YOU LOSE!"

Some of the crowd went wild while the rest sat uncomfortably. Aela tried to breathe, but she couldn't. She gritted her teeth against her own sobs.

"Child," a woman whispered in her head. The woman from her Joining entered her mind as time almost stopped. "It's not the end. Close your eyes."

Aela coughed as she was forced to look at her party members.

"My sweet, my lovely angel, you're alright..." the woman whispered.

"Reach, darling," the woman cooed.

Piotin threw Aela head first to the ground. She did not let go of Biter, but she did not entirely hold onto her consciousness.

"It's over, Warden!" Piotin sneered.

"No… it's not," Aela choked.

"Shut it, you fucking idiot," he replied. "Face your death with dignity."

"No."

"You're a fool."

"I'm a Cousland," she spat hoarsely. "Your hammer can't take that away."

"Sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

The woman in her mind giggled beautifully. "Show him, darling. Show him the gift I gave you."

"What gift?" Aela forced as Piotin raised his fists in premature triumph.

"I'll show you."

Aela flipped onto her back to face Piotin as he readied his hammer. It was as if the woman stroked her scarred cheek with invisible fingers before Aela felt something build in her throat. It wasn't blood, it was power. It was song.

Piotin swung his hammer around his head and a sound tore from Aela's throat that wasn't entirely her own. It was a note of many notes, a song of many lyrics, and it ripped from Aela like an explosion of fire. It hurt, but the power infected her.

Piotin fell back and the crowd leaned away.

"That's it. Sing…"

Aela a carried the note from her body until Piotin's hammer slipped from his fingers and he fell to his knees. As soon as the crowd started cheering and the Proving Master raised his hands to end the round, Aela smacked a hand over her mouth. The crowd was quiet, her party amazed and confused, and the Proving Master proclaimed her as the winner in Harrowmont's favour.

Aela's hand shook over her lips as blood erupted through her fingers in a horrific hacking noise. The gates were raised and she vomited onto the sand. Hands were on her, and Sten had her in his arms. The crowd cheered for her as they shoved their way out of the Proving Grounds. Leliana had her hands on her stomach, and she was screaming for help as Aela's breaths became far and few between.

Her vision went dark as the searing heat of Orzammar consumed her. But she liked the suffocation. She liked the burn. And she listened to the woman in her head reassuring her that it was over, that she was safe, that she had a beautiful voice, and that she had won.

Aela was high on adrenaline and the excitement of her sudden marriage that she mowed down any darkspawn that faced her. And that number was vast. But she was in no need of her secret weapon yet.

She cleared her throat and fought back-to-back with her husband, her king, and she was on fire. Blackened blood and spit covered her drakeskin and she loved it. The battle for Ferelden was in her favour. She felt it in her bones, her being, her spirit. Oghren and Sten were bashing a poor Shriek to death and Leliana and Zevran danced through a cluster of Blight Wolves, laughing and crying and cheering and screaming. Aela almost couldn't keep up.

"Up ahead, darling," Alistair said angrily.

"I see him."

An Ogre, massive and livid, crashed through the castle's courtyard and roared. Aela readied Biter and Ripper in her hands and Wynne stepped behind her, ready to help. The rest of the party knew that it was best to focus on the smaller creatures. Aela and Alistair fought Ogres together, no matter what, to honour Duncan and Aela's injuries.

Aela and Alistair charged together and both glanced at each other with massive smiles. Alistair grabbed Aela's arm and gave out a warcry, making his eyes burst into red light and giving him the extra strength he needed to hurl Aela forward. Aela thrust her feet outward and her feet smashed into the Ogre's face.

Alistair let go and Aela reached out mid-flight. She grabbed one of the Ogre's horns and heaved back. The Ogre stumbled and let his head fall back. Alistair slashed at his throat while Aela wrenched back on the Ogre's horns like a stallion. The Ogre reached back to grab Aela, but she knew he would do that. She stabbed down as he reached up and tore open his armpit.

She slid off his shoulders and sliced open the beast's legs. He roared, enraged, opening his jaws way too wide. So Alistair jumped forward and shoved Duncan's sword into his mouth. The beast's eyes rolled back and Aela and Alistair screamed in unison as they pushed him back. Aela's magical voice shoved the Ogre back into a heap on the ground.

Right after he hit the ground, Alistair looked at Aela, who pressed her fingertips to her own lips to stop her song. She looked back, winded and excited. Alistiar reached out and grabbed the back of Aela's neck, crushing her with a feverish kiss. He pulled back just before she could respond, and they were back to fighting as if they weren't married, as if they had nothing to lose, when in reality, they could lose so much in a single moment.