The sound of soft humming brought Elisa out of her deep slumber. It was that familiar soothing music that pulsated in the back of her mind months after she drank Avernus' concoction. Tomes from Weisshaupt described it as the Call of the Old Gods. It was something she could easily ignore at first up until recently. Were it not for the blood mage's recent tonic, it would have probably worsened and she would be undergoing her Calling before the year ends.
Now, however, it was loud and persistent, the far-off chorus turning into a beautiful symphony she found too difficult to deny herself. No, I mustn't! Her thoughts shouted. Then she became fully aware of her surrounding; her back against a hard surface, her arms and legs restrained, and her lack of armor or any clothing other than her smallclothes. Her eyes cracked open and as her vision cleared, she noticed the faint orange glow from a lantern somewhere that gave the area a faint light.
Alarmed, she turned her head frantically from side to side. The taint felt so strong there that it was as though, the darkspawn were standing beside her. The thought of becoming a Broodmother crossed her mind and she couldn't help but shudder and struggle harder from her bindings. She would rather die than turn into those horrendous monsters!
"You need not be afraid, Commander."
The male voice made her still. It was low and cultured, but despite its calmness, her stomach couldn't help but twist into knots. It was the same voice she heard before she lost consciousness. From above her hovered the creature's figure whose face looked strangely human but twisted and corrupted by the taint. And from the staff he held and the dirty ragged robes he wore, her guess that he was an Emissary.
"Who... Who are you...?" She murmured breathlessly.
"The Architect," was all the creature replied before tracing its clawed finger along her arm, cutting her deep enough for blood to trickle down. Beside her were small vials he took, and used to collect the crimson fluid. When he was finished, he watched curiously as his captive's injury began to mend quickly on its own, and when it fully healed itself, he would repeat the process methodically.
Elisa hissed through gritted her teeth. With each wound inflicted and mended, the distant music swelled as it became so powerful and maddening to the point where she wanted to rip off the flesh from her bones just to escape it. "Stop! STOP!" she screamed at the top of her lungs while struggling vigorously from her bindings. She wasn't certain whether it was directed at the music or the Emissary. All she wanted was to get away from it all.
The rusty shackles that held her tightly nearly broke as she continued to pull and writhe. She would have escaped by then if not for the Emissary immediately casting a sleeping spell on her person."Rest..." He whispered softly as his hands continued to weave the magic above her.
She opened her mouth to protest but no words came out. Though the music continued with its enticing tune, her body became too weak to act on it, and soon enough, she fell asleep once again.
Clad only in filthy rags, Loghain groaned as he stirred on the cold stone floor. Chill seeped into his bones as he tried to sit up but his body felt too heavy to move. Where am I? His eyes opened but the room was too dark that the only thing he could properly see was the bars of the dingy cell. Closing his eyes, he tried to sense the other Wardens. They were unconscious but nearby – Anders, Sigrun, Oghren, Nathaniel…
Where's the Commander!? With sheer will, he forced himself to sit up as he scanned the vicinity with squinted eyes until they were finally used to the light the room offered. He saw the mabari and the prickly elf that tagged along in the same cell as theirs and still unconscious. From the other side, he noticed another cell but all of his hopes were crushed as it was filled with nothing but rubble.
Not far behind him, he heard movements, rough cloth lightly rubbing against the floor. He turned and saw Nathaniel whose hands were pressed tightly against the wall for support while he attempted to sit up. Grey eyes met icy blue and as the archer leaned his back against the wall, he asked. "Where are we?"
"Not certain," Loghain grumbled as he continued to glance around while trying to remember the last bits of what happened before they ended up there. He remembered seeing a darkspawn – an Emissary – before they were put to sleep. What happened next? He quickly checked his body for injuries and was surprised to find that some were healed though he noticed a few added scars on his forearms. Looking over to the archer, he asked, "Are you injured Howe?"
Nathaniel checked and only found the scars on the same area as the older Warden. "Just the arms."
A while after, the rest of their companions woke up, groaning lowly at their state as it took them a great effort to sit up. Once they were all awake and alert, Loghain had them check their bodies for any injury. Other than Velanna and Caena, they all were completely healed save for the scars on their forearms. "So, it's just the Wardens then," Sigrun muttered as he stared at her injury. "But why…"
All of them paused from their musings when one of the two outer door opened, revealing an Emissary followed by two genlocks who carried someone in ragged dress towards their cell. As they had gotten closer, they realized that the body was their Warden-Commander's, her auburn hair all matted and her skin sickly pale. Nathaniel was ready to pounce on the nearest darkspawn as one began unlocking their cell door, but Loghain gripped the archer's shoulder to stop him, knowing that it was suicide to attack armed enemies; especially when one of those enemies had his staff raised as a warning. However, he wasn't able to stop Caena from charging towards the darkspawn.
With a flick of a hand, the Architect's magic knocked the hound back against the wall before meeting their sharp glares again with calm indifference. "Please, stay your hands. I wish not to harm you more than what is necessary." He then allowed the genlocks to drag Elisa's body inside before shuffling out and locking the cell door.
As the darkspawn exited the room, Nathaniel sprinted over to his Commander's body, tugging her into his lap while Loghain inspected her for any injuries; and just like the rest of them, she had several scars on her forearms. The latter couldn't help but ponder on the fact that only the Wardens had those wounds. He then remembered what Maric had told him after his little excursion with the Orlesian Wardens down into the Deep Roads – one that he had thought then was full of manure. After all, who in their right mind would simply believe that they found a talking darkspawn mage who planned to corrupt everyone in Thedas with their taint, and thus, turning them into some sort of darkspawn-like hybrids? It sounded like something mothers would tell children when they misbehave… and so was the Blight – something his friend had also insisted and came true.
Pulled out from his thoughts, Loghain shifted his gaze to the blonde mage that knelt beside him. "How is she?" Anders asked, his gaze fixed on the unmoving body.
"Exhausted," Nathaniel replied, his finger pressing against the side of her neck. Her pulse was faint but it was far better than nothing. "Know any helpful spells mage?"
Anders nodded before he shut his eyes tight and concentrated. With a mutter of a quick chant, his hand glowed white while they hovered above his Commander. She twitched slightly though remained unconscious. The mage hoped his spell would hasten her recovery at least.
For the next two hours, all were silent except for the prickly elf's feet that paced around and Sigrun's rummaging in the rubbles just next to their cells in hopes of finding something to use as a lockpick. Caena rested between Loghain and Anders, nudging its nose on its master's hand every now and them as though the gesture could wake her up.
Finally, after another hour, their Commander began to stir. Nathaniel sighed in relief as her eyes fluttered open. "How are you feeling?"
Elisa started awake, sitting up way too fast which caused her to groan at the pounding in her head. "Ugh… Like an overripe melon ready to split," she mumbled, shutting her eyes tight as she pressed a hand against a side of her head.
"Not so fast," Loghain cautioned as he placed a hand on her back to steady her. When she glanced up to him, he noticed that her eyes were clouded and unfocused as though lost in her own thoughts. It was brief and subtle that he considered that it was due to the room's lighting.
Shaking off the grogginess, Elisa stood up with the assistance of their archer before looking around the vicinity, blinking several times 'til she got used to the light. "Found anything useful?" she asked as she began pacing around the cell.
Nathaniel shook his head. "Sigrun checked several times already." He allowed her to ponder for a moment before he raised a question. "Do you know anything about the creature that captured us?"
Confusing images flashed in her mind as she tried to jog her memory. There was a darkspawn… then vials of blood, and the music – yes, she could never forget about that maddening music for even though the sound was distant at the moment, it still tugged on the edges of her consciousness. She had to stop herself from recounting the past event before she lost her sanity to the soothing hum. "I… I don't know. I think he said something but, everything's all too blurry."
"Doesn't matter," Velanna interrupted, causing everyone to turn their attention to her. "We're wasting time standing here doing nothing. We need to find my sister."
"Not one to be pessimistic but we don't exactly have a key," Anders pointed out.
Ignoring the other mage's comment, Velanna marched towards the door and concentrated on gathering what little mana she had. Her fingers began to sizzle but before she could unleash a fire spell on the locks, the Warden-Commander raised a hand to halt her. "If you're intention is to stay here and rot shem, I care not," she spat irritably yet the other woman didn't move her hand an inch.
"Don't," Elisa murmured as she stared blankly towards one of the outer doors. "Someone's coming." And just as what she stated, a door opened and an elven woman entered, shutting the door behind her before hurrying over to their cell.
"Seranni!" Velanna gasped as she rushed over to the bars and grasped it tightly as he inspected her sister who had dark blotches all over her face. "Oh Creators, what have they done to you?" She wanted to hold her sister but when her hands reached out to cup her cheeks, she flinched away.
The Wardens need not sense the taint within her to know that she was already corrupted.
"I'm fine Velanna. They haven't done anything to me," Seranni insisted, looking over her shoulder almost every second. "It's not me he wants." It glanced over to the auburn-haired woman briefly before rummaging through her pouch. "I have to get you out before something bad happens. I don't want anyone else to get hurt."
"All right." Velanna sighed in frustration. "Let me out and I'll take you home."
In the midst of unlocking their cell's door, Seranni shook head. "I'm sorry, I can't go with you." When she opened the door for them, she added, more urgently this time. "They're going to sense my presence here soon. I have to go. The darkspawn have your things. You can get them back if you're clever and careful." Her gaze darted towards one of the outer doors before shifting back to her sister. "Good-bye Velanna." Without waiting for the other elf's reply, she shuffled out of the room.
"No! Seranni! Wait!" Velanna shouted as she tried to chase her sister but firm hands gripped her arms tightly and held her back. Her head turned and glared angrily at the Warden-Commander. "Release me shemlen this instant!"
"Don't be foolish," Elisa held the elf's sharp gaze with a stern look as she pointed towards the door. "There are darkspawn just outside that door. Engaging them unarmed is suicide."
"So I should just leave my sister then!?" Velanna spat.
"No, I'm telling you to use your head. But if you want to waste the opportunity your sister gave you and rush to your own peril…" Elisa released her grip before turning to her fellow Wardens. "Then go."
Velanna marched towards the outer door; however, before she opened it, she glanced towards the Wardens. Their Commander had begun speaking strategies with them along with the older man who seemed to be her Second-in-Command. Her lips curled into a deep scowl as she pondered the infuriating shem's words. Oh, by the Creators, damn that shemlen!
Returning to the group, she heard the Commander asked their healer. "What spells can you cast that doesn't require you a staff?"
"I could freeze or paralyze one but it wouldn't as powerful as how it usually is," Anders replied then shifted his gaze like the others towards the Dalish elf when she snorted derisively.
"Is that all the Circle could teach you?" Velanna said mockingly as she crossed her arms on her chest.
Anders scoffed, crossing his arms on his chest as well. "And you can do better?"
Velanna smirked, taking pride to her years of training under her Keeper. "Far better than you, I'm sure."
"No time for boasting," Elisa interrupted before her head turned towards the outer door. "Three darkspawn on their way here."
It wasn't difficult dealing with the three gunlocks that entered since the two mages immediately paralyzed them and the rest attacked, either by snapping the creature's heads or using their weapons against them, before the spell wore off.
As her companions scavenged what weapons and armor from the dead darkspawn, Elisa walked up the stairs and paused when she reached a laboratory lined with bookshelves on its walls. Footsteps from the rest of her companions echoed in the large room, and she spared them only a quick glance before moving further in. She approached a large table where vials filled with crimson fluid were on top it. As her fingers glided smoothly over the cold stone table, memories of the creature's experiments flooded her mind. The music sang within her and it made her clench her jaws and swat the vial off to the ground before her hands gripped the edges of the table so tightly that a small area began to crack.
The sound of glass shattering on the floor startled everyone as they paused from searching the room for additional equipment and glanced worriedly over to the auburn-haired woman. "Elisa?" Nathaniel called, brows furrowed as he carefully approached her.
"I'm fine!" Elisa replied as she heard his footstep getting nearer. Immediately noticing that she had shouted her response, she repeated her answer much calmly this time with a deep sigh. "I'm fine." Turning around, she faced her companions with her usual stoic expression. Her gaze landed on the archer who stopped a few feet away as his stare was filled with great concern. "Found anything useful?" she asked, quickly changing the subject before anyone started interrogating her.
It was Loghain who stepped forward with a journal and few notes on his hands while looking unperturbed by the Warden-Commander's mood. "Here, though some parts still need translating."
She flipped through a few pages before shutting it and moving past the others, picking up a longsword, which was the only weapon left on the darkspawn corpses, as she made her way towards another door. The others followed and when her Second caught up and was walking beside her, she heard his barely audible whisper. "You're terrible at keeping secrets."
Her eyes widened briefly before she exhaled and murmured. "Believe me, I'm trying." She heaved out another sigh. "Now is not the best time to discuss this." She dropped the matter after that as she pressed forward into a large chamber.
Sigrun scout ahead and upon her return, she reported with a grin. "Large group standing under crumbling statuary, and a ballista on the upper level."
Anders grinned at the news. "A ballista conveniently placed, huh? Well, why not? I'm always up for a spot of iconoclasm!"
Oghren grunted. "Those things are for cowards and elderly women! I say we go down there and get our hands dirty!"
Velanna threw hands in the air. "By the Creators! We're wasting time!" She moved past the group and fired off a few rounds on the statue which came crashing down on the darkspawn. The only survivors were two Hurlocks which were quickly dispatched. The group salvaged more armor and weapons, though the two mages argued on who would get the single available staff.
"Oh, for the love of the Maker! Just settle it with rock, paper, scissors," Elisa said irritably as she fixed the leather armor she pilfered before turning towards the large set of metal doors. "Incoming darkspawn!"
Velanna just shoved the staff to the other mage and began casting, her hands surrounded by an orange glow. Anders did the same, chanting a spell as the staff's orb gave an orange glow as well. As the doors swung open, they sent fireballs straight to the incoming darkspawn, the impact causing the latter to be thrown back as they burn. The others took the opportunity and finished them off before they could stand.
"My fireballs are bigger than yours, shemlen," Velanna stated with a smug grin as she shook the residual heat from her fingers.
"It's not about the size Velanna," Anders answered, moving ahead of her before she noticed the slight grin on his lips when he realized that the statement could have a double meaning.
"Oh? Is that what the Circle taught you?" She scoffed derisively and strode faster, passing by the other mage. "They were trying not to hurt your feelings."
"The Circle lied to me!" He gasped dramatically. "Andraste's sword! My world is falling apart! I have been unmanned!"
"Enough! Both of you!" The two were abruptly silenced as the Warden-Commander's voice echoed in the large chamber. Turning their heads towards her, they met her icy glare as she tossed a staff taken from the Emissary to the Dalish elf. She said nothing else after that, but the intensity of her gaze and the way she tightly gripped her bloodied sword says that obeying is a better option lest they end up decapitated.
The group continued further into the mines with their Commander's pace increasing the more darkspawn they killed. Most figured that she wanted to get out of the mines as soon as possible, but there was more to that. The song had become insistent once again, and the only way it would quell down temporarily was the sight of blood and ichor splattering everywhere. She knew she should stop – to stay as far away from the front lines as possible; but she couldn't stay idle either. To allow her mind and body to stay passive is to allow the maddening symphony to consume her. She needed to find their things. She needed to drink Avernus' tonic soon.
After hours of roaming around the scattered tunnels and ruins, everyone finally recovered their weapons and armor. Despite that, however, Elisa didn't find her pack. She grew more and more impatient that she set aside her bow to favor the two swords she picked up along the way just so she could slaughter the darkspawn they encountered as quickly as possible. The others were already having a difficult time keeping up with her.
"How about a quick break," Anders voiced out between heavy pants. "I've been shooting lightning bolts and whatnot for hours! I can barely cast a wisp."
"There's no time for rest."
"Commander." Her Second's stern tone made her turn around. Her mouth parted as she was about to remind him who's in charge only no words came out at the sight of her exhausted companions. Even Velanna, who didn't complain about her urgency, was struggling to stand straight.
Closing her eyes, she heaved out a sigh. "Fine. Just a short rest."
She led them to a nearby room, having Sigrun pick the locks before they entered. Inside were furniture, a fairly large bed, a desk and several bookshelves all properly arranged. "Looks like it's been used recently," Nathaniel commented as he carefully examined the area.
"Maybe it belongs to her sister," Anders said as he briefly glanced over to the Dalish.
"I highly doubt that," Velanna replied, "Seranni hasn't been gone long enough to accumulate all of this."
"It belongs to that creature." All gazes turned to Loghain who perused the desk filled with parchments. The rough handwriting was similar to the ones on the journal and notes they found earlier. He gathered them and turned to his Commander who was rummaging through the contents of a chest.
"Dammit! Where is it?!" Elisa muttered through gritted teeth as she continued searching, yet unable to find Avernus' tonics.
"Where's what?" Nathaniel asked, carefully approaching her but immediately stilled as she thumped her fists against the chest, her curses louder.
Gathering her bombs and poisons, she shoved her pack on the archer's chest. "I have poultices, stamina draughts and lyrium potions there. Use it, and be quick with your break. I'll be waiting outside." She stomped past him and towards the door, shutting it once she stepped outside.
All of them fell silent, even the mabari, as they stared towards the door. That clearly was not the same calm woman that had been leading them up until they were captured. They shifted their gazes to her Second for answers. However, he gave none other than, "I'll speak to her."
As he made his way towards the door, a hand caught his arm. His head turned and he met the young Howe's sharp gaze. "Loghain, what in the Maker's name is going on with Elisa? Ever since she was brought from that laboratory, she's been…"
"Murderous? Crazy?" Anders finished, trying to lighten up the growing tension. Everyone stared at him and he added, "have you seen the darkspawn she recently killed? Even Oghren's brutality couldn't match those!" The said dwarf didn't even protest to the mage's comment.
"And that is why I'm going to speak to her," Loghain answered as he pulled his hand away. He gave each of them a pointed look. "Unless, one of you wishes to do the task instead." When no one replied, he huffed, "thought so," before making his way out of the room.
Outside, his Commander was pacing back and forth like a restless predator, her hands flipping her blades as though it was a baton. Sapphire eyes darted towards his direction and she nearly threw the sword at him if not for what little control she had left. "It's not wise to be with me right now," she stated as she let out a shaky breath. "Not when… I hear the music."
Loghain's eyes widened as he replied in a hushed but urgent tone. "I thought it'll take another year."
Elisa resumed with pacing around. "He did something to me. I don't know what. All I can recall is that he wounded me and took some of my blood, then that damnable humming became louder and louder. I searched my pack for Avernus' tonics but they were taken away." She halted and shifted her gaze back to her Second who saw in her eyes that she was struggling for control despite the latter slowly slipping away from her grasp. "Loghain, we need to go. If I stay here for long… If I can't find any way to make those tonics, I might…"
She needn't explain further as her Second responded with a deep sigh. "I understand Commander." He turned around and headed back to the door. Halfway through though, he looked over his shoulder and said, "however, they will want an explanation after this – the real one. I hope you are prepared."
Her eyes closed as she nodded. "Yes, I know, and they will have it as soon as we get out of here. I swear it." She heard the sound of his greaves clunked as he walked back to the room, and not long after the rest of her companions stepped out, looking wary and unsettled but they remained silent. Her gaze landed on Nathaniel who looked at her worriedly yet still apprehensive in approaching her. It's for the best, she thought. Loghain, however, suddenly stood beside her despite the danger she posed. "Best if you stay behind with the other-" She tried to dissuade him yet he interrupted.
"I am your Second, Commander. It is my duty to remain at your side, not cower from behind." He glanced over to her with a raised brow as she stared at him wide-eyed, then a brief smile ghosting on her lips before she began walk towards the large set of metal doors.
It was not the most comforting thing a man has told her, especially with his soldier-like delivery, but the words worked well enough as a distraction and kept the maddening music from taking away what sanity she had left.
End of Chapter 19