After informing Constable Aidan that they have dealt with the smugglers and pointed him to where their den was located, the Wardens made their way back to the inn. The rays of sunlight had already faded when they reached the inn. Elisa paid the innkeeper for additional four rooms and some more for Oghren's unlimited supply of ale for the night – something the red-haired dwarf immediately took advantage of as he got a tankard of ale before going over to the far corner of the room. She glanced over to Anders who hastily busied himself between two barmaids who seemed very much charmed by the mage and his adorable cat, Ser Pounce-a-lot.
Loghain stood beside her, no doubt itching to discuss matters regarding what they found out in the smugglers' den earlier. However, he was halted by Nathaniel who placed a firm hand on his shoulder. "May I speak with you, Warden Loghain?" The taciturn warrior looked at the archer with a raised brow.
"Go ahead," Elisa stated as her hand gestured a dismissing wave, "just head over to my room when you're done." Moving past the two men, she made her way to her room and left the two men alone.
They sat down to the table far from the other patrons of the inn. For a moment there was an awkward silence except for the barmaid who passed by and placed two tankards of ale on their table. Finally, Nathaniel started, "I… I want to know the entire story, about the Blight, the civil war… about my father."
Loghain leaned back against his chair, his entire features neutral. "Are you certain about this?" He waited for the younger man to give him a nod before he began, "before heading to Ostagar, I asked him to talk some sense out of Bryce about his recent dealings with the Orlesians. While waiting for him and Rendon with his armies, I heard from Cailan that a young lady had arrived with Duncan, demanding justice for the slaughter of her entire family. That was when I learned of the massacre of the Couslands."
"And yet you still trusted him?" Nathaniel stared at him in disbelief.
"When I returned to Denerim, Rendon offered his services when it comes to political matters. I demanded answers about the Couslands and he claimed that after he had spoken to Bryce, the latter ordered his remaining men to attack him and his soldiers." Loghain scoffed, one which was more directed to his own foolishness than the Warden across him. "Trust is an overstatement for I had doubts of his excuse enough that I had planned to have an investigation of the massacre after the Blight has been dealt with. For that time, however, I needed to rely on his political mind, and thus, delegated certain matters to him I while dealt with securing our borders." A foolish mistake, he thought with a deep scowl.
Silence fell upon the two men once more as Nathaniel absorbed all the information the former teryn had relayed to him. Loghain could still see the disbelief in the young Howe's eyes, so he added, "the Commander's right." Nathaniel glanced up to the older Warden who continued, "Rendon Howe was a greedy ambitious traitor who would not settle for anything less than everything."
That was all Nathaniel needed to hear from Loghain. Standing up, he excused himself before heading out of the inn. Loghain merely watched him leave, assuming the boy wanted some time alone. After finishing is mug of ale, he stood up and walked towards the Warden-Commander's room.
"Come on~ you know you want to~" Anders cooed as he held his cat in front of Elisa who sat beside him on the sofa near the fireplace of her room. "Just snuggle Ser Pounce-a-lot for a bit." The cat meowed as its large eyes stared at her. It was cute, Elisa had to admit, almost too tempting that she might succumb to Anders' plea at any moment.
Caena who was resting on the floor in front of its mistress, looked up and growled at the cat. Elisa soothed her mabari's anger by lightly rubbing its back with her foot. "If I do that Anders, Caena here might rip Ser Pounce-a-lot into shreds out of jealousy." She heard the mage gasped as he immediately hugged the cat close to his chest. "And you're going allow that!?"
"I can't say I would be able to stop him if it comes to that. As I said, my hound's the jealous type."
The sound of knocking made both Wardens turn their heads towards the door. Elisa made her way over to the door and opened it for Loghain who immediately entered the room. "Where's Nathaniel?"
"Went out for a walk," Loghain replied curtly as he looked over to the blonde made.
"Oh, are you two going to… Should I leave now?" The twinkle in Anders' eyes and wide grin told the two other Wardens enough what he was thinking. Maker, the mage probably has an entire story written in his head!
Elisa sighed as she massaged the bridge of her nose. "No Anders, he is not going to, as you had said earlier, 'invade my borders'." The last words were spoken with her fingers air-quoting. For a moment, Loghain had a mortified look but quickly masked it with his usual stony expression and icy glare. "Do I even want to know?" he muttered.
Anders continued his laughter as his Commander escorted, if one would call pushing, him out of her room. "Make sure Oghren doesn't cause trouble with the patrons and go find those barmaids or something afterwards," she ordered before slamming the door shut. She sighed once more before setting herself back down on the sofa. If Zevran was here, those two would definitely get along well.
She glanced down on Caena who rolled over on its back, begging either its mistress or her guest for a good belly-rub. She smiled slightly. Even if Anders' cat was adorable, it could never top her mabari. As her foot proceeded with rubbing its belly, she looked up to Loghain who began examining the ledger she took from the smugglers' den. The ones on the ledger weren't thankfully written in Orlesian. His eyes stopped at the name of the Orlesian poison. Beside it were the dates and quantity of each item.
Elisa watched a deep frown formed on his lips. "What is it?" she asked as her hand beckoned him to sit beside her so that she could examine the ledger as well. As he sat down, his finger pointed at the numbers beside the word 'Le Miel Amer'. "Three crates were delivered just two days ago. No names were mentioned but it's highly possible that the conspirators might have ordered this. This kind of poison isn't exactly cheap and easy to make."
Leaning closer to stare at where his finger was pointing, she muttered, "perhaps it's just coincidence?"
He snorted. "If that's coincidence, then I'll scrub the floors of the entire Keep myself."
"Oh, I'd like to see that." She gave a slight grin though he responded by an annoyed look. Sighing, her body moved away from his. "I'll worry about such matters once we're back at the Keep."
"You're rather relaxed for someone who has people wanting you dead," he commented as she took the ledger from his hands.
"No surprise there." She shrugged. "Everyone wants me dead." Walking to where her pack was, she placed the ledger. "Anyway, let's drop this for now. We'll be leaving early tomorrow so best we get some early rest." She went over to the door and opened it. Just as he stepped outside, she added, "and tell that to the others as well."
With a nod, Loghain went to where Anders and Oghren were. Nathaniel had just returned then and informed the three about the Warden-Commander's order before heading to his room.
The next day, Elisa woke up just as the sun began to rise. After changing from her night clothes to her leather armor, she went out of her room and left a message to the innkeeper to tell the other Wardens to meet her outside of the Chantry before she left to check if those items she had ordered yesterday. The merchants were just opening the shops when she got there and they told her that they would have it ready in an hour.
Assuming that the others were already at their meeting place, she decided to come back for the goods with the other Wardens. No doubt she would need extra hands to carry all of the items she ordered. As she was making her way up the stairs leading to the Chantry, she saw only Nathaniel there staring up at the statue of Andraste. She couldn't help but grin slightly at the déjà vu. "I wonder," she began as a way to make her presence known while she walked towards him, "was Andraste really that much of a looker? Is that what you're wondering?"
Nathaniel scoffed. "That sounds like something Anders would say."
"That was actually something Anders had said yesterday," she replied once she stood beside him, "I just thought that most – if not all – men think like that."
"Then I suppose I'm not like most men, fortunately," he muttered as he focused back on the statue, "there used to be a monument here of Byron Howe, my great-uncle. He died during the rebellion while helping King Maric reclaim his throne." He sighed heavily. "And it's gone now... all because of what my father did."
"I could have them replace it if you want," she offered.
Nathaniel thought that she was mocking him but when he saw her foot beginning to move back down the stairs, he stopped her. "Don't bother. No one here will want to see it."
She paused and turned to him with her brow arched up, though when he said nothing, she returned to his side. "There's a long line of heroes in my family," he mumbled as his gaze shifted towards the city. "But now… it's all lost." His lips curled down into a deep scowl as his fists clenched tightly. "Curse my father and his ambitions!"
"Then turn it around."
His head immediately turned towards her, his eyes meeting hers which looked at him fiercely as she continued, "do something to regain your family's honor rather than just complaining about it." He held her gaze, and for a moment, he thought he saw the old Elisa.
She quickly looked away, her expression returning to its usual passiveness. "How is Delilah?"
"She doing well," he replied, unable to hold back a smile, "she married a merchant named Albert. She's due in the spring." He noticed the corners of her lips twitched up as she muttered, "that's good to hear." Suddenly, sounds of footsteps and clinking metal could be heard approaching towards them.
"Took you three long enough," Elisa commented then raised a brow when she noticed Anders was walking strangely. "What happened?"
"The mage here had too much ale last night," Loghain explained before Oghren added, "had to kick him in the stones to wake him up." It earned the latter a sharp glare from Anders. "You could've just poured some cold water on me."
"Man up sparkle-fingers!" Oghren snarled.
Before the two could get into any heated argument, Elisa stepped between them. "Enough! Both of you!" She gave the two a stern glare before she gave the orders, "Loghain, Oghren, Nathaniel, head over to the Market District and pick up these items I've ordered for the Keep. Anders and I will meet you at the stables." She handed Loghain a folded parchment containing the list of things needed to be restocked at the Keep. Then, when the three left, she turned her attention to Anders with her brows knitted together. "Anders, you… just sit there or something… 'til the pain subsides. I'll be in the Chantry for a bit."
"Praying for my swift recovery?" He quipped as he carefully sat down on the nearby bench. "I'm touched but there's no need Commander. I'll be back to normal after a few minutes of not moving."
She rolled her eyes. "Sorry to disappoint but I am not the praying sort. This is more of a… courtesy call to the Revered Mother." She took out a pouch of coin and tossed it up lightly as she added, "I'm sure she would appreciate an … offering from the Grey Wardens. No doubt they had received the news about a certain apostate escaping their so-called 'justice', and this might… ease their anxiousness."
The mage paused for a moment, and when he finally picked up what she meant, he grinned. "You won't take that from my allowance would you?"
"I'll think about it," Elisa replied while trying to suppress an amused smile as she entered the Chantry.
When they arrived back at the Keep, Elisa let Anders, Nathaniel and Oghren return to the quarters to rest. She and Loghain, on the other hand, first went over to where Wade to check if he had finished making the armors she had commissioned.
"As always, your masterpiece looks impressive." Elisa's fingers smoothly glided around the dark massive armor made for specifically for Loghain, her fingers stopping at the Grey Warden symbol on its breastplate. As her Second tried it on to see if any adjustments were needed, she gave Herren the rest of her payment then grinned to the meticulous smith.
"I call it garbage! If anyone asks who made it, don't tell them it's me." Wade turned back to his smelter. This made Elisa sigh deeply. If Wade continues to be unhappy, even with Herren's constant prodding, the former would end up making armors and weapons of poor quality, or even stop making anything at all!
"How about this," she offered in a barely audible voice so as not to attract Herren's attention, "when I find something suitable for your exceptional skills, I'll immediately bring them to you." She saw Wade turn around with hope gleaming in his eyes, so she raised her right hand and swore. "You have my word." Her grin widened when he gave in, though she stepped back and eyed Loghain in his new armor when Herren gave her and Wade a suspicious look.
"So, how is it?" she asked her Second once he had the whole set on.
He flexed his arms back and forth. It fitted him well, he would admit that, but, it still felt odd not wearing his old armor. "I like this armor better on you Loghain," he heard her comment as she rubbed her chin while eyeing him from head to toe, "it adds to your… dark and brooding persona." He scoffed as the corners of her lips twitched up.
"Warden-Commander!" Elisa turned around to face the man that called her out. She remembered him as one of Levi Dryden's relatives, Edan, she believed was his name. He was a lean man with black hair and bushy brows. He stopped in front of her and panted with his hands resting on his knees before he looked up and grinned. "Good to see you."
She smiled slightly as she shook his hand when he held one up. "Good to see you as well. What brings you to Vigil's Keep?" She stared at his wagon not far away from where they stood. "For trade I hope."
"Aye, part of it," Edan replied, following where the Warden-Commander was staring, "went to Highever a month ago. Thought you might be there. Met Teryn Cousland who said you left for Weisshaupt. Supplied his men with some weapons and armor for some time until I heard that Wardens from Orlais had arrived and you'd be leading them." He suddenly remembered something and hastily searched his pockets. "A letter from His Grace and the mage from Soldier's Peak." Two slightly wrinkled sealed envelopes were then handed to her. One had the Grey Warden seal while the other had the Cousland's.
Loghain raised a brow as he stared at the letter his Commander held. Fergus was more or less just sending his love and perhaps offer of assistance, but what about the blood mage, Avernus? The Warden-Commander rarely spoke of him other than that he was a blood mage and Grey Warden researching on the hidden powers of the Taint. He didn't care much what that mage was up to, until now when he noticed the brief troubled look on his Commander's face.
Sensing her Second's curious gaze on her missives, Elisa kept away from his prying eyes. "Thank you for delivering these." She smiled to Edan before handing him a few silvers. She let him set up his stall in the Keep and once he left, she turned her attention to Loghain. "If the armor's fitting is just right, then let's head inside. Varel's no doubt waiting for us and we still have 'those papers' to show him."
Varel sat on the chair in front of Elisa's desk while he examined the documents the Wardens found in the smuggler's den. Loghain stood beside the Warden-Commander who sat on her chair as they waited for her seneschal's opinion on the matter. "Knowing that such items are being smuggled into the arling troubles me," he mumbled more to himself as he set the ledger down on the table. "From the looks of the prices and quantity, I'd say someone with deep pockets could be involved." His brows furrowed as he wondered who among the Banns in Amaranthine could even have such wealth. Even with the combined wealth of all the Banns in Amaranthine, these would still be too expensive.
"Possibly someone from outside the arling," Loghain suggested, his lips curling into a scowl before turning his gaze to Elisa. With her eyes fixed on the documents on the table, she appeared to be in deep thought. The sound of her fingers drumming on the armrest of her chair echoed in the silent room as the two men waited for her response.
"With the smugglers' base already sealed, the conspirators would need to use other means to acquire their goods." She paused for a moment to think then ordered, "Varel, have soldiers patrol the trade route from the west and the ships from the docks," she finally stated as she straightened herself on her chair.
"And you think they wouldn't use other paths?" Loghain replied as he crossed his arms.
She shrugged. "They might, but by doing so, they would look more suspicious. Not to mention that darkspawns are still running amuck. I think they'll take their chances with soldiers. At least they can still bribe them if caught."
"What about on the east?" Varel asked, "the trade routes in the Wending Woods?"
"I've spoken to Mervis," she replied, "no one dares to travel using that route for fear of monsters attacking their caravans."
"While that could limit the conspirators' access to the arling" Varel explained, "it would also limit the goods coming from Denerim and southern Ferelden."
"But trade is good in the northern Ferelden, is it not?" Elisa's brow arched up. "And those from the Free Marches as well?"
He shook his head. "Usually, but Highever and the nearby villages there are still recovering both from the Blight and Howe's usurpation." The stories of the villagers and remaining survivors of the Highever massacre about how the former Arl of Amaranthine maltreated them made Elisa's blood boil. She had to calm her nerves lest she throws her anger at someone. She focused on her seneschal once more as he continued his explanation. "I suppose we can rely on the goods coming from abroad for a time being, though it will not be enough to compensate the loss."
Once more, she began drumming her fingers on the armrest, her brows knitting together. Maker, it was easier facing the Archdemon! She glanced over to Loghain who approached the wall where the map of Ferelden was posted. "We can trade with the merchants from Soldier's Peak," he suggested as his finger pointed at where the fortress was located.
She stared at him for a moment while her mind began to ponder. "The Drydens often ply their wares around Ferelden," she mused, "and, with the number of travelers they encounter, they could also be a good source for information." She glanced down on her table where the unread letter from Avernus was placed. I need to see him as well.
"The chasm is along the way," Loghain informed as he returned to her side and took out his folded map of Amaranthine before showing her the area the hunters marked.
Snapping out of her brief contemplation, she looked at the marked location then told her seneschal, "Varel, call the other Wardens. Tell them, we have important matters to discuss."
End Chapter 8