This is a unique way of acting for a lord.

Nathaniel adjusted the bow fixed to his back, the legacy of his grandfather strapped on tightly, reminding him of his own lack of true accomplishments. Then again he had long ago pushed aside the idea of performing heroics and fighting the good fight, in contrast to the heavily armoured woman stoically remaining silent as they marched after their leader, her glances at him always of the glaring type.

Nathaniel ignored it though, hoping that the idiot patriot would soon stop suspecting him of treachery and instead go back to ogling the mage a bit further to the left. Instead he focused on the elf marching ahead of them, apparently barely caring if the others followed her or not as she made her way down the road surrounded by a forest that was quickly getting thicker and thicker. A lord usually brings more then three guards...and never charges into a possible dangerous situation with only those numbers.

He grimaced. Foolish.

"What?" Mhairi pointedly asked, still glaring at him.

Here we go...Nathaniel looked over at the knight, the displeasure clear in her eyes as she tried to stare him down. Nathaniel wasn't impressed though, and his face remained impassive as he replied: "Pardon?"

"Don't try that, I saw the look." The woman scowled at him, as if he had just spit upon a statue of Andraste. "You don't like the Commander."

Nathaniel almost scoffed at the accusation. "Do I have to like her?" He glanced over at their leader, who made no sign that she was hearing the conversation, not that he really cared, they had made each other's position blatantly clear.

"Yes!" Mhairi bristled. "She's the hero of Ferelden!"

"That doesn't mean I have to like her." Nathaniel pointed out and looked away, already bored by the conversation. Hero worship...foolish woman. The forest was not as thick as the ones in the Free Marches, which eased Nathaniel's worries a bit. Back there he would have been in the front, scouting out a safe path for the other mercenaries. Being in a small group ripe for plucking for any nearby bandits wasn't exactly what he had had in mind when he chose to stay with the Wardens...were they all so reckless?

"She defeated the blight, she's directly responsible for the survival of Ferelden...respect is due!" Mhairi growled, a hand coming up to punch him, only to slowly drop as she thought better of it. "And I don't trust you."

"Respecting and liking someone is two different things." Nathaniel shrugged, eyes narrowing as he tried to spot any sign of movement in among the trees, any hint of the bandits that preyed on the merchants that they were supposed to find. Yet there was nothing...too much nothing.

Something is wrong.

"Ah, so you respect her?" Mhairi asked, sounding somewhat calmer.

Do I? Not in the proper sense...like one respects a tornado I suppose...but that's not true respect, it's a healthy fear. Nathaniel shrugged, most of his attention still on the trees around them. "I didn't say that." Where are the birds? Or the insects? It's too quiet...

"But you just..." Mhairi sighed, the hostility in her voice returning. "I still don't trust you."

"You said that already." Nathaniel dryly remarked, wishing the woman would shut up so he could concentrate. There is definitively something off here...it's not an ambush waiting to happen, no, then it would itch between my shoulder blades...this is something else.

"Yes and you didn't answer that!" Mhairi growled loudly, her anger now marked with irritation.

Nathaniel sighed. Is there no end to this infernal woman's blabbering? "It wasn't a question."

"No but...gah!" Mhairi exclaimed in frustration, head snapping around to glare at a now chuckling Anders. "And what are you so happy about!"

Still chuckling under his breath the man smirked at her. "Your frustration obviously, it's adorable."

"A-" The woman's words died in her open mouth as she stared at the mage, the glare turning into confusion, then a small blush, then more glaring, making him chuckle once more. "I will have you know that...that..." A pause, Mhairi searching for words, then simply raising her hands above her head in frustration as she looked up at the sky. "Men!"

Ignoring Anders' laugh and the following scowl of Mhairi Anders sniffed at the air, finding the smell...off. There was the normal smell of the forest, trees, grass, dirt...yet there was a distinct hint of something burnt...and the smell of dirt was stronger then it should be, as if the ground had been torn open, reminding him of the smell of fresh farmland rather then a forest. "We should have brought soldiers."

Mhairi turned away from glaring at a now grinning Anders to look over at Nathaniel with narrowed eyes. "They are busy taking in taxes and securing small strongholds against the growing number of darkspawn raids."

"All the more reason to bring some, can't have their Commander die out here." No matter how good it would feel... "We are few and vulnerable here."

"Have you not heard the tales of the Commander?" Mhairi's glare, that Nathaniel had almost begun to think was her standard expression by now, turned into a smug look as she continued: "This is how she travelled, on foot, a small band of wardens and heroes, doing great deeds, turning the tide by coming to the rescue at a critical moment."

Nathaniel scoffed. "Propaganda, such a small group couldn't have done everything. It was not she who defeated the blight, it was Ferelden."

"A Ferelden she united!" Mhairi's smug look instantly turned back to that ineffective glare of hers.

"Not arguing that." Nathaniel shrugged, irritated with himself for having drawn Mhairi's attention from Anders. Shouldn't have said anything. "But don't be naïve, a small group like this is vulnerable, unlikely to survive and can't do too much to change the course of history, by force of arms at least."

"Which makes the accomplishment of doing just that all the more grand!" Mhairi argued, a fire in her eyes, excitement of the idea of such heroics mixed with the irritation of Nathaniel not simply accepting it as truth.

Nathaniel shrugged, knowing far too well that one couldn't argue these things with people like Mhairi, they either died, or leant by surviving. He was more surprised that Lynn of all people would lead them into such danger without a proper force, considering that at least the broad strokes of her tale had to be true it was surprising that such a veteran would take such a risk... Maybe she's suicidal? Nathaniel narrowed his eyes at the elf's back, the memory of those dead eyes looking into his all too clear. Or maybe she doesn't care? Either way she's the only one that's useful to talk to about this...which says a lot about the company she keeps. He shot the smirking apostate and the idealist knight an exasperated look.

Ignoring the look Mhairi was giving him, a look demanding an answer to her foolish exclamation, Nathaniel lengthened his steps so as to reach their marching leader.

The elf didn't offer him any sign that she noticed him as he came up next to her, her eyes facing forward, jaw set, as if she was resolved upon nothing else but reach the other side of the road. Nathaniel found that a bit strange since they were supposed to find something in the forest, not get through it...but decided against pointing that out. Instead he settled for the simple. "Something is wrong."

"Agreed." Lynn replied, voice cold as always, her eyes still facing forward. "None have ambushed us."

That's her plan? To have our small numbers be pounced upon by bandits? She is suicidal! Nathaniel kept his tone neutral though as he noted: "No animals, and the scent of the forest is wrong." He tried to think that he was just on another mission with the mercenaries in the Free Marches, not next to his father's murderer. He failed...but at least he kept his tone neutral even as he shot the woman a glare. "This is not the work of bandits."

There was a slight pause as the woman considered his words, then a short nod. "Agreed." Then she suddenly turned her head to look at him, and Nathaniel found himself inwardly cursing himself as he looked away, the dead eyes looking at him too unnerving to face. "Suggestions?"

Huh, at least she's not a Commander unwilling to listen...Nathaniel grimaced, unsure if he was supposed to be happy about that or not. Of course it was good for his survival rate, and not to mention that he in general appreciated leaders that listened to those that just ordered around. On the other hand a selfish little piece of him wanted the woman to do wrong, to have no redeeming qualities. A fool's wish. Nathaniel shrugged the suicidal notion aside. "We stop baiting them, we enter the forest and find them instead."

"Can you do this?" No hesitation, no argument about the idea of strategy, just a question aimed at seeing if it was possible...and also confirming that she couldn't.

The pride of knowing she knew nothing of tracking was childish though...Nathaniel knew that and shrugged it off, he would not be so pathetic with the woman he despised. Instead he just nodded, not hesitating either: "Yes, easily."

"Good, do it." Nothing more, the elf stopping in her tracks as she gestured for Nathaniel to get to work, her stance tense, ready to leap into action. Despite her uncaring look she almost looked...impatient.

Nathaniel wasted no time, the idea of hesitating in front of her abhorrent to him.

Instead he went to work.

8

8

8

The tracks of the bandits were easy to follow, too easy.

At first Nathaniel had suspected some sort of trap; that the bandits were being far more clever then usual and were preparing to face a group they might find dangerous in the best position possible.

But the tracks were too wide, too many branches had been snapped, too much had been disturbed...it wasn't believable if the bandits were trying to lure the group into an ambush, it was too obvious. Then he had found blood on some leaves...and a couple of breaths later a corpse, a man in torn leather armour whose entire chest had been crushed by some giant force.

The group had all drawn their weapons as he had shown them the decidedly dead bandit.

No, there was no ambush waiting on them. The tracks were obvious because the bandits were in a hurry.

And Nathaniel had seen other tracks as well...large tracks...imprints large and heavy enough to crush not only the grass but also press the earth down. He had shown them to the others...and told them that he had honestly no idea what thing could make such marks.

Even now, crouched by another one of those giant prints, his bow in his left hand and his right resting atop the imprint, he couldn't figure it out. It's not warm, yet the grass has still not risen...it feels as if we're close yet... and what makes such a mark? It's uneven...different each time, only the size seems constant...probably bigger then a bear. Nathaniel didn't like the conclusion, or rather, the lack of conclusion.

"Let me guess..." Anders voice was painfully loud in the equally painfully quiet forest, the mage no doubt smirking at Nathaniel's back. "...the great tracker still don't know what's ahead of us."

"Maybe he's not as good as he claims?" Mhairi added with an obvious grin, no doubt wanting to vent some of her frustration with Nathaniel.

Unimportant. Nathaniel shrugged. "The tracks are still unfamiliar, but we're close." He suddenly tensed, feeling...something. "Very close."

Anders chuckled. "Well that's a relief, I can't wait for the bandits to-"

"Hush!" Nathaniel raised the hand holding his bow towards Anders as he leant forward in his crouching position, ears perking as he heard it...a slight crack...distant but unmistakable. "Straight ahead, close."

"I don't hear anything." Mhairi scoffed, but Nathaniel ignored it as he cocked his head to the side, eyes half-closed as he tried to pick up more sounds.

Metal...wood...voices...loud but muffled by terrain... "There's a battle ahead of us."

"I still don't hear anything." Mhairi grunted, her armour loud as she shrugged.

Turning, Nathaniel inwardly sighed, but didn't bother to point out the obvious. That's because you're wearing a helmet...instead he turned to Lynn, the dead eyes looking back at him making him shudder. Yet he kept his voice steady, words clipped as he reported. "Sizeable battle, nearby, rough terrain ahead."

A nod...and the elf began to run, brushing past him even as she drew her weapons, simply ploughing through any bushes in her path as her golden armour crashed through the under brush, heavy boots loudly thumping into the ground.

Nathaniel could only stare after her, not really comprehending what had just happened. So much for subtlety...how has she survived for so long?

A roar. "For Ferelden!" And Mhairi rushed after the Commander, her heavy armour flattening a bush in her path even as her sword cut down a small tree as she charged forth like some berserker high on deep mushrooms. And there goes idiot number two...

Sighing he looked back at Anders, who with the staff in his hand was smirking at Nathaniel's obvious frustration. The smirk widened as a glint of an idea formed into the mage's eyes, making Nathaniel shake his head in realisation. For the love of...please don't.

Raising his staff high the man assumed a mock serious look and cried out: "For kittens!" Before rushing past Nathaniel, almost tripping on the brush Mhairi had crushed even as he with a less then convincing roar rushed after the others.

Nathaniel stared after the charging mage, mouth silently working as he struggled not to start cursing. And the only one having some intelligence does the same thing...am I the only one finding rushing headlong into a fight we know nothing about foolish?

Then he realised he was alone, and that the others were fighting, perhaps desperately so...and a curse escaped him. Damn honour...

He charged after them.

888

Thanks to Abydos Jackson, as always.