Author's Note: I admit, the first move here is stolen from Fable 3...which has effing amazing combat moves. Plus it's a fun game :)

~Can't Please Everyone~

Reaching to her sword, Drea cried out in pain. Quickly, she realized the blow came from behind and the knife in her back rendered her arm useless. Awkwardly, she spun around to see Arkon had one intruder down by his throat as a second intruder stared at Ashlyn's dagger in his chest. While he stood with his mouth hanging open in shock, a third attacker was rushing to pass him, heading towards Drea.

Springing into action, Ashlyn sprinted past Drea, towards the attacker with the knife in his chest. Jumping onto him, she braced her foot on his chest as she grabbed the dagger. In a fluid motion, she pushed off of him, smoothly ripping the knife from his flesh, and propelled herself at the man charging towards Drea. Stabbing her blade through his spine as she landed, he suddenly flopped forward and both men hit the ground in near perfect sync.

Drea stared in wide eyed shock, never seeing anything like that before in all her battle experience. Even Arkon grew still after he had dispatched his victim. Cleaning the blade on her cotton pants, leaving bright blood smears, Ashlyn approached Drea with a concerned expression on her face. Dozens of questions flew through Drea's mind as she stared up at the beautiful honey-haired woman who was suddenly less innocent looking. She could see now that Ashlyn's flowing dresses had left her looking small and petite, perfectly hiding her lean, taught muscles. Before her mind could start racing through all the implications, one thought quickly rose to the surface - the Vigil was not safe. Somewhere between a joke and statement of shock, Drea spoke, "Well after careful consideration, I've decided to trust you. Can you get this knife out of my back?"

Kneeling down beside her, Ashlyn took a look at the blade jutting out from the back of Drea's shoulder. Shaking her head, she replied, "It's a small dagger, but it is keeping the blood in. If I take it out you will faint from the sudden loss of blood pressure. It's best to leave it in for right now."

"But we're under attack," Drea argued, "I must to get to the main hall, but my off hand isn't that great." She gestured to her main sword arm that was tightly curled against her chest. Every time she tried to even straighten it, the intense pain brought bursts of colour before her eyes.

"It's alright, I've got you Commander," Ashlyn assured as she carefully helped Drea to her feet, not willing to bend on her refusal to remove the dagger. After grabbing a sword from beside her mattress, Ashlyn followed closely behind Drea as she hurried towards the hall.

She could hear the clanging of weapons as she approached the main hall. Pushing the door open, she saw the attack was smaller than she first thought, and the few guards that had been in the hall were quickly besting the intruders. Nate and Oghren were already in the room, fighting along side with the guards. Pushing ahead, Ashlyn took the lead and cut down anyone in the way as Drea kept moving to the front of the room. From the side doors, Anders and Sigrun arrived with more guards, and soon the attackers were overwhelmed.

With Arkon at her side and Ashlyn behind her, Drea looked over the room and realized she knew the intruders. The leader stood in the centre of the room, not held by a guard, but frozen to her spot, knowing she lost. "Bann Esmerelle?" The woman raised her chin defiantly and glared at her. Astonished, Drea sputtered, "You finally decide to lead a violent rebellion against me and…this is what you come up with? You choose a plan that only works if your forces outnumber ours? I open my doors to you - give you a room for the night for our meeting tomorrow and you don't even think to attack me in my sleep?"

"Are you really asking me to defend my strategy?" Bann Esmerelle asked sharply.

Drea blinked at her for a moment, silently agreeing that was a foolish thing to say. Suddenly feeling short of breath, she tried to fight off the faint feeling threatening to overwhelm her. Slowly, became aware that the back of her shirt was wet and realized her wound was bleeding. The blade had been worked slightly loose, causing a slow, steady loss of blood. In her brief fog, she felt a hand steadying her arm, and realized Ashlyn was holding her. Glaring, she wretched her arm free and steeled herself as best as she could against her blood loss. Running her tongue over her dry lips, she turned her attention back to Esmerelle. "You're right," she agreed before demanding, "Why?"

"Ha!" Bann Esmerelle shrieked, "Do you even have to ask? Do you really not understand how much you've cost me, you bitch?"

"You've cost us all!" another attacked piped in. Drea glanced at the other and recognized Lady Liza, the noble who lost her bid on Ser Derren's bridge.

"And lowering the tariffs on the port trade? You think I would just sit by and let you destroy everything I've worked for?" Esmerelle growled.

"You!" Nate exclaimed, forcing Esmerelle to turn, "You're working with the smugglers aren't you? You keep the tariffs too high for an honest port merchant to afford, and let the smugglers have free reign once they pay you a bribe."

"I've only ever followed through on arrangements your father made, Nathaniel," Bann Esmerelle's voice softened considerably as she addressed Nate.

"So is it because of one of his arrangements that your precious city is only ever one step away from squalor while you never seem to go wanting?" Nate pushed.

"You don't understand," she cried, "We all loved your father and he took care of us. He wanted the best for us all. And then she comes along and…" Bann Esmerelle chocked back her words when she saw the glare on Nate's face. Quickly changing her line of thought, she added, "We are here to stand for your father because he's not able to stand for himself. He was your father Nathaniel…will you not help us?"

Angrily, Nate pointed to her with his sword as he shouted, "You stand for your own greed! Don't you dare try to appeal to my sense of duty by him. I have no choice in the matter; I will forever be bound to him through name and blood but never through principles. He did horrible things. You had a choice in your loyalties, a choice to stand here today and you deserve everything you get."

"Nathaniel Howe," Bann Esmerelle's voice was shrill, "You were always his favourite. He sent you away with hopes that your time in the Free Marches would turn you into a man. But I see you're just the same sniveling whelp you were before. I never did get what he saw in you…"

"Enough," Drea's voice boomed through the room. With the dark shadows around her eyes and the colour draining from her face, she looked more menacing than weakened. "Captain Garavel, take them away."

"No," Nate stopped her, "Kill them."

"Why?" Drea narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously, recalling their first conversation, "Because when something makes me angry, I kill it?"

"Because you kill when you have no other option. And Drea…" he paused when he realized he blurted out her name, but pushed on, "You have no other option. This will only end in the gallows, but if you do that, she'll turn more people on you."

"He's right," Ashlyn quickly agreed, speaking loudly from behind the Commander. "She'll have to be allowed her final words and will paint you as the villain and herself as the martyr of Amaranthine. Anyone who was on the fence about you will be swayed."

"But," Nate cut in, "If the usurpers die in battle, then you get to present this to the people your way."

Drea's eyes swept over the room. There was half a dozen upper class citizens and a few handfuls of their followers left standing. None begged for mercy, but she had to wonder how many were bravely not begging and how many feared Bann Esmerelle more. For a long moment, Drea remained still, weighing the words of Nate and the bard. No matter how she looked at it, they were right - if Esmerelle had a chance to speak, she'd be getting another knife in the back. Standing as tall as she could, she did not gesture for their deaths as expected, but rather turned to address the room. "It is with a heavy heart that I make this announcement," she spoke slowly, starting the speech she would give to those in the city, "Bann Esmerelle and her followers died last night when they attempted to violently take over Vigil's Keep…To me, this is one more heartbreak to add to the list of what we, as an arling, have suffered. She claimed to fight on Rendon Howe's behalf, believing she could lead this arling better. I can hardly blame her for this. Change in itself is difficult, but add to that the recent string of tragedies we have had to endure and it becomes almost unbearable. Esmerelle had a vision for this arling but, like Rendon Howe's vision, it was short sighted - born out of selfishness and greed."

Pausing for a moment, she let her words sink in. No one spoke and the air sat thick in the room. After taking a deep breath, she continued, "I too have a vision for this arling; for us to rise from the ashes of our hardships and become stronger than we have ever been. We will become the strongest and greatest arling this country has ever seen. We will be a leader for others to look to - an example for others to follow. We are Fereldens! This strength is in our blood! It is what courses through the veins of each of us. I still see the death of Esmerelle and her people as a senseless loss, but it's one we never have to repeat. Time and time again, to the amazement of other countries, Fereldens have clawed their way from the depths of despair to become something greater! We do this through unity with our fellow countrymen. All I ask is for you to stand with me. If we stand together…we…will…not…fall."

Drea was passionately shouting the end of her speech, but when she finished, the silence that followed was deafening. Finally, she glanced around the room at those within the grip of the guards. Some of their eyes reflected the terror in their hearts, knowing their death was on them. Others were still glaring with rage. The ones that hurt for Drea to look at, however, were the ones who stared up at her with regretful tears in their eyes. Her soft side started to stir, wanting to do the impossible and spare some of them from their fate. Even as she braced herself and pushed those thoughts away, a sick, hollow feeling settled in the pit of her stomach. It was a familiar feeling - the one she got when she was about to do something that would forever haunt her. In her heart, she knew the faces turned to her would be added to the faces of the others that visited her each night.

Turning to Captain Garavel, she raised her chin slightly. He turned to his guards and gave a curt nod. Before the gasps could turn into screams, the guards quickly sliced the throat of the intruder they held. The room erupted into strained gargling noises as master and servant alike struggled for air that wouldn't come. Dark red blood slowly seeped from their necks, staining the crisp, clean armour that marked the noble class. As their bodies became limp, they slipped from the guards' hands and crumpled onto the floor.

As her fellow conspirators fell, Bann Esmerelle, who had not been held, suddenly lunged at Drea. Her arms were arms outstretched and her face twisted with rage as she let out a primal scream. Before the nearby guards could reach her, a dagger flew past Drea's shoulder into Esmerelle's throat, sending her sailing backwards onto the stone floor. Instantly, she clawed at the knife, but quickly her hands fell away as she died on the floor of the main hall.

Drawing her sword with her off-hand, Drea spun around and pressed the blade into Ashlyn's throat, "Who are you?"

Everyone in the room froze in shock at the Commander's sudden outburst. Their weapons were at the ready, but they remained still keeping a weary eye both on the bard and the dying nobles. Without flinching, the woman replied, "Ashlyn, my Lady."

Bringing her face closer to the bard's she demanded, "Who sent you?"

Finally, Ashlyn did flinch, "I am not permitted to say."

Pushing her sword harder against her throat, Drea shouted, "Who sent you?"

Ashlyn visibly stiffened, trying to relieve the pressure on her neck, "Your…your benefactor demanded to remain anonymous."

"Benefactor?" Drea snarled, "As if sending deception in my midst is a benefit to me? Why are you here?"

Ashlyn stopped looking at Drea and let her eyes focus on the far wall, trying to keep her composure as she repeated, "I am not permitted to say."

Roughly Drea shoved her with her forearm while still keeping the blade to her flesh, "Why are you here?" Ashlyn swallowed and clenched her jaw tightly, but remained silent. "Are you here to spy?" Drea pressed. The bard said nothing. "To kill me?"

Stifling a gasp, Ashlyn breathed, "No."

"Then what?" Drea shouted. Pausing for a second, she added, "To protect me?"

Ashlyn's eyes darted to Drea, meeting her intense stare for a moment before blinking and looking down, giving her answer away. "I…I'm not permitted to say," she mumbled.

"To protect me," Drea repeated, as she loosened the pressure of the sword to Ashlyn's throat. Both women were well aware that Drea was no match in her current state and yet Ashlyn made no move against her. She remained still even though, with her incredible speed, she would likely be able to escape the guards of the room. It suddenly seemed very plausible that she was sent as protection. Trying to work through the haze in her mind, Drea struggled to figure out who she knew that would want to send her a body guard…who would even have the resources…who would feel the need to do it in secret... "Alistair?" she finally asked.

Again, Ashlyn quickly glanced at Drea before she forced herself to look away again. "I cannot say," her voice was hardly above a whisper.

"Was it the King?" Drea yelled in frustration.

Ashlyn's eyebrows tightly knit together as she tried to stop from breaking down. Finally squeezing her eyes closed, she dropped the sword she had still been holding and it hit the ground with a loud clatter. "I will not bear arms against you, my Lady." As Ashlyn started to lean forward, Drea pulled her blade away. Lowering down to kneel before Drea, Ashlyn bowed her head as she added, "You may kill me if you wish, I will not stop you. But I cannot tell you who sent me."

As Ashlyn offered her life, Anders took a step towards the women when he felt a strong hand on his arm. Looking from the hand to its owner, he saw Nate holding him firmly, giving him a warning look. Steadying himself, Anders remained still.

Drea simply stared at the bard. It was either the best bluff in all the Thedas or she was sincere. "Right then. Looks like I'll be taking a side trip," Drea exhaled as she took a step back. At a loss, she finally shoved her sword onto a groove on the stone beneath her feet and used it brace herself as she turned to her recruits. "Now, can someone please get this knife out of my back?"

Without looking at him, Anders jerked him arm away from Nate and rushed to Drea's side. Gently he put an arm around her waist and supported her good arm at the elbow. Looking behind them, he stared down at Ashlyn before finally asking, "Was any of it true then?"

Looking back up, she had tears in her eyes as she answered in an unsteady voice, "Every word of it Anders, I swear to you."

Not swayed, he coldly replied, "So you only lied to me through omission then."

Finally, the tears spilled onto her cheeks and she hastily bowed her head again, allowing her hair to cover her face.

"Take her away," Drea ordered Captain Garavel and gestured for Nate to come help. As Nate approached, she finished, "And if she resists…kill her."

As he carefully guided her from the room, Anders quietly asked, "What are we going to do with her?"

"I don't know," Drea admitted with a sigh as she looked over her shoulder at Ashlyn. Continuing to look down with her hair obscuring her face, she held her arms out towards the men and offered no resistance as they pulled her to her feet. "She saved my life though. That's got to count for something…"