Chapter 14: Threats in the Dark
She was drowning in the song.
That is how it felt, that is how it always felt. Ever since the moment the Archdemon had died, or…perhaps it was when Tamlen first touched that mirror. All she knew that the darkness was consuming her, slowly eating away at who she was, and who she might become.
Lyna groaned in her sleep. She had tried to get some rest before the ship made landfall. If Sabine was to be believed, Kirkwall was not the kind of city you wanted to be distracted in. As always it had taken her a long time to finally doze off, because when she did.
The song was waiting for her.
She could hear it, echoing off the cold stone walls of the deep roads. The Archdemon might have been dead, but everything it had been had passed through her thanks to Morrigan's ritual, it had left a stain on her mind, and in her soul.
In her weaker moments, that stain tried to suffocate her.
She curled up into a ball in her hammock, whimpering like a newborn babe.
It might not have been so bad had the darkness been empty, but it wasn't…
The shadows were full of monsters, and they were always eager to greet her.
Always.
She tried to ignore it, to push back the shadows, to fight her way back into the light.
The darkspawn were mindless, they had never been strong enough to hold her here. Only the Archdemon had ever been that strong…
So it came as a surprise to her when she felt something reach out of the darkness, and try to pull her back down.
The song grew louder, she fought against it, and then, over the strains of music, she heard a voice, a strange phlegmy voice.
The sound chilled her to the bone.
"I am seeing you again, Warden Elf."
Lyna fought to free herself, but the shadows constricted around her, light a giant's hand trying to crush her.
She felt…amusement in the taint.
"The Warden Elf cannot be hiding," the voice said again, "We are sharing the same blood now. Your blood is being inside me, just as ours is being in yours."
Lyna tried to scream but only shadows came out. In the darkness she could almost make out a face. Pale, diseased, the whole right side of the darkspawn's face was burned and melted, bubbled up with weeping sores.
It reminded her a bit of a genlock, but it was different, taller perhaps, it moved more like a mortal creature than a darkspawn.
The creature sneered at her, showing a mouth full of razor teeth.
"I am seeing you, Warden Elf," the creature chortled, "You cannot be thinking that crossing the sea will be saving yourself from me."
The creature shook its head.
"The bounty on your head is being doubled," the darkspawn spat, "The surface scum will be hunting you now. They will be bringing your body to me, and then…then…"
The darkspawn chortled.
"I will be feasting on your flesh. Your skin will be becoming my new cloak; your ears will be making an excellent necklace. Your hands will be making…"
Lyna freed herself, she stumbled away down the dark corridors, but still the monster's voice followed her.
"You cannot be hiding," the creature snarled, "I will be finding you! You are being blood of my blood!"
Lyna fought against the darkness.
"You cannot be hiding! The Forgotten will be finding you!"
The warden screamed.
IOI
Lyna jolted up in bed. She looked around the darkened hold, expecting the creature to be there, expecting it to have followed her through the taint.
She took a deep breath and then another.
She…she…
Oh Creators, she thought.
It…it could not be?!
Slowly, her heart began to slow. She blinked away the last of the nightmare as the song shifted back into the back of her mind.
Lyna sighed.
"The Forgotten will be finding you," She murmured.
She shook her head.
"You cannot be hiding."
Slowly her mind began to work again, processing what she had seen and heard. The Archdemon was dead, that had not changed, but it was clear that something had reached out through taint to her.
"The Forgotten," she murmured, her elven ears lowering in anger, her fingers curling into angry fists.
"So that was the monster's name."
She shouldn't have been surprised. She had never truly believed that all the awakened darkspawn had died with the Mother and the Architect years ago. Of course, those had all been hurlocks; she had no memory of an awakened genlock.
Was this what had just made contact with her, an awakened genlock?
She pursed her lips.
It was possible she supposed. The Architect had dreamed of freeing his people from their chains. He had wanted to free them from the call of the old gods. He had used the blood of grey wardens to further this end, to give the darkspawn the warden immunity to the call that drove them. Of course there had been side effects…
Lyna shuddered.
Most of the awakened darkspawn she had encountered had been driven mad by the Architect's scheme, the Mother most of all. Those that weren't were all blood thirsty killers. If this…this Forgotten had survived the Architect's version of the joining…?
She shook her head.
But the creature had also said something about a bounty? Was it possible that this was where the contract to kill her had come from?
Was it even possible?
Her ears twitched as she considered the possibility.
An awakened darkspawn could have been smart enough to have placed a bounty on her head. He wouldn't have been able to do it himself of course, but that did not mean that he could not act through others. She had met ghouls that had retained enough of who they once were to interact with the world outside of the darkspawn horde. One of these could have posted a bounty, with no one realizing who it was they were truly working for.
Lyna ran her hand through her blond hair; it was damp with sweat, as were her small clothes.
She leaned over, almost falling out of the hammock in the process, grabbing her leggings she pulled them on and sprang to her feet.
The warden's eyes narrowed.
It seemed that she had another enemy hunting her now, and this one did not have to search for her…
The taint would tell him all he needed to know.
Lyna slipped on her tunic and breast plate, she thought she could hear boots steps coming down the steps from up on deck. She needed to be ready when whoever was coming arrived.
Of course, now she had a new question to consider.
Was she going to tell the others about this?
They deserved to know, she did not doubt that. They were not wardens, and deserved to know exactly what was hunting them. At the same time, if she said anything she might just lose them, that might jeopardize her mission as a whole. She still needed help. She believed that more than ever.
Could she afford to jeopardize her own mission?
"Warden," Bok's voice emerged from the shadows.
Her eyes narrows.
No, she realized.
She could not.
She shook her head. There would be another time to answer questions, later, in the future. For now she needed to tend to the present.
Now…she needed to worry about Kirkwall.
"I'm…uh… awake, Bok," she called out.
"Good," she heard the dwarf say, "We are approaching the black cliffs of Kirkwall."
"I think you are going to want to see this."
IOI
Lyna's mouth fell open, her blue eyes widened at the sight before her.
There was a time that she thought Denerim was amazing.
That time had just passed.
The cliffs of Kirkwall were massive, and hanging from each, statues of the great dragon gods worshipped so long ago. As the ship approached the entrance to Kirkwall, the massive bronze statues known as the twins towered above them, cast into the shape of two weeping slaves, the twins had been one of the first sights travelers saw of fair Kirkwall since the days of the Tevinter Imperium.
The sight left the warden speechless. Even Findel was moved to silence, such was the grandeur of the old Tevinter monuments. Bok, Royce and Esme stood behind them, their things already gathered, waiting for the moment that the group would be able to depart. Kierhen stayed close to the animals, the Ranger shook his head at the ancient Tevinter statues.
He sighed.
He was not impressed.
"I've heard," he said, "that this was the center of the slave trade once. That thousands of humans and elves were brought here to work the quarries, that so many have died here that the veil is as weak as a piece of parchment in this city, that evil is constantly being drawn here."
The Ranger sighed.
"I wonder what that makes us."
Bok snorted at his question.
"The days of the slave trade are long gone, Master Ranger," he said, "Though with such a reminder as those you see when you pass through those cliffs, it is not surprising this place is still linked with ancient evils."
The dwarf shook his head.
"Me, I'm more concerned with current evils, like the people hunting our warden friend here, and by extension us."
He gave Lyna a gentle smile.
"With luck," he added, "We have evaded such evil…for now."
It was at that moment that Sabine bounded up to them, the bard was clad in fine black leather armor, her eyes twinkling mischievously, and her smile sly and cruel.
"The Captain will let us off on one the docks in Lowtown," she said, "From there you will be able to go anywhere in the city."
Royce gave her a surprised look.
"Us?" he inquired.
"The bard smirked.
"My patron has business with one of the Hightown nobles. I'll follow you as far as the steps, and then…you're all on your own."
Esme nodded at that news. Lyna tried not to smile. The sister and the bard seriously did not like each other, not that the bard had done anything to endear herself to the warden or her companions.
Findel looked out over the water; the great fortress in the distance had caught his eye.
Sabine's lips curled in distaste.
"The Gallows," she informed him, "It used to be a prison. It is a circle of magi now."
Kierhen snorted.
"Same difference, girl," he said.
The bard chuckled.
"Perhaps," she agreed, "Regardless, our young friend should keep his distance, unless he wishes to make his stay in Kirkwall a bit more permanent."
Despite his attitude, Findel moved closer to Lyna and Esme. Both women noticed the move, and reached out for the boy's hands.
He took them, just for a second.
Progress, the warden thought, at least the boy realized that he had allies with him now.
The ship slipped past the Gallows as it moved farther into the harbor. The smell of tar and smelting metal from the distant foundries filled their senses.
They had arrived in the city of chains.
Now they would have to survive it.
IOI
It was dark by the time the ship finally made landfall. Sabine paid the Captain as soon as the ship reached its berth in Kirkwall. Lyna and her allies stepped off the ship and onto the hard stone docks of Kirkwall.
Findel's nose wrinkled as he looked at the squalor around him.
"It stinks here," the boy complained.
Behind him, the Mabari and she wolf sneezed, the soot from the Foundries were everywhere this far down in the city. Torches gave off some light, but many shadows still darkened their path.
Lyna frowned.
Shadows like that were good hiding places, perfect places to set up an ambush.
Her old warrior senses tingled.
This was not the kind of place to let down ones guard, probably not even during the day. Even Sister Esme seemed to realize that, the sister had a death grip on her fighting staff.
Lyna led them forward; with luck their arms would be enough to discourage any trouble. They were a group of heavily armed and armored people; hopefully anyone watching would realize that they were far from easy marks.
A group of ten men marched down the steps before them. They held a tight formation, and all wore matching uniforms.
The leader noticed Lyna and the others and turned towards them.
Behind her, the warden's allies tensed.
"Steady," she cautioned, "Steady."
The armored men drew closer. They stopped, just out of the light of the closest torch.
"Hold," there leader called out, "In the name of the Kirkwall guard, hold!"
Bok started to raise his mace, but Royce stopped him.
"Just a guard patrol," the warrior reminded him.
Bok shot him an acidic look.
"That is what I'm afraid of," the dwarf replied.
Lyna did not say anything, but she feared the dwarf had a point. Not all guardsmen were as honest as Royce, if this lot new about the bounties on her head…?
Her eyes narrowed.
If they knew and decided to try and collect, there would be a fight. If they didn't, she did not have enough coin to bribe these men if they were corrupt, and a fight might start anyway.
She sighed and took a step forward.
Better get this over with quickly, she would find out where they stood.
First, she would try diplomacy.
"Greetings officer," she said with her friendliest smile, "Is there a problem here?"
Their leader paused, he wore some kind of braid on his shoulder, if that meant he was an officer or not she was not entirely sure.
"You are well armed elf," he said coldly, perhaps too well armed."
Lyna shrugged.
"We are just passing through," she informed him.
"If you can direct us to a tavern where we might spend the remainder of the night we would be most grateful," Esme added.
"We are not looking for any trouble," Sabine chimed in.
The officer's eyes fell on the bard, her armor fit every curve of her body perfectly, and it would be hard not to imagine what the girl looked like naked.
The man licked his lips, a flicker of lust shown in his eyes.
"Regardless of your intent," he said, "There is a new ordinance in Kirkwall, no weapons inside the city limits; you will have to surrender your blades and bows to us now."
Lyna's eyes narrowed. She glanced over at Sabine.
The bard shrugged.
"First time I've heard of such an ordinance."
"It is new," the officer said, "Viscount Dumar passed it only yesterday."
Interesting, Lyna thought, of course, that did not mean that she was simply going to obey.
"You cannot expect us to surrender our weapons ser," Lyna said.
"They will be returned to you, tomorrow. We are not thieves good woman." the officer continued, "We will escort you to the Hanged Man, it is not the best of establishments, but it will give you a place to rest for the night.
Bok who was still fingering his mace gave the Guardsman a sly look.
"And if we refuse?" he asked.
The guards all drew their weapons.
Lyna hissed under her breath.
She had no desire to make the guards of this city her enemy. She…
"There is no need for that brothers," Royce said with a smile, "My friends and I will cooperate."
Lyna shot him an icy glare, how dare the guardsman overstep his place like this.
He gave her a serious look.
"Trust me," he murmured.
The elf's brow furrowed, but she chose to listen, for now.
Royce stepped forward, with his free hand he gently guided Esme behind him, then he drew his great sword, and offering it up pommel first.
"Here," he said, "You can start with mine."
The guard officer paused; Lyna could almost see the wheels turning in the man's head.
Finally, he lowered his guard slightly.
He looked at young guard behind him.
"Joffrey," he said, "Take his weapon."
"Aye, ser," the young man said with a rough salute. Despite his smile Royce shuddered.
The young man approached with his blade drawn.
He stepped under the light of a torch, showing dirty plate and leather armor. His sword however was new, and shiny, gold filigree in the hilt.
Royce nodded.
"A lovely weapon," he purred.
The boy smirked as he reached for Royce's sword.
"Thanks, I…"
Royce struck like a panther.
One moment he was offering up his blade, the next it was whirling around and striking out like a serpent.
The young guard lost his head; it fell into the water with a loud splash. His body fell over, twitching and spilling blood.
So quick was the boy's death that his fellows did not have time to respond.
Lyna stood, dumbfounded.
Royce snarled. His eyes flashing with anger
"You want our weapons impostors," he snarled, "Come get them!"
"Take them the officer hissed, "Save the women if you can."
Lyna lunged, her blade in hand with Arrow at her side. Her swords clanged of one of the guard's shields.
Great, the warden thought before the red haze of the battle wrath took her…
…So much for diplomacy.