My deepest thanks to Warrose and Jinx1983 for their brilliant reviews! :D I also want to thank those that have this story on their favorites (already! wow!) and those who signed up for alerts. You all rock! :D
Let's follow our party now as they make their way further west towards the direction of the Frostback Mountains.
Bioware owns, of course. ;)
Chapter 2 - And Your Point Is?
I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly
I'll do what it takes till I touch the sky
And I'll make a wish, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway
Out of the darkness and into the sun
But I won't forget all the ones that I love
I'll take a risk, take a chance, make a change
And breakaway
Breakaway - Kelly Clarkson
.
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Alistair ordered everyone to stop as he gazed further along the road, furrowing his brow. He thought he'd heard something so he continued to look ahead, his eyes narrowing.
Behind him, Anders drawled at Velanna.
"You know we are both mages, I insist we get together to improve our spells."
Velanna made a derisive sound, and Alistair smiled to himself. The day she let Anders so much as touch her would be the day he left for the Deep Roads, as that wasn't going to happen anytime soon either. He wondered if she even liked men at all. Well, to be fair, she had flirted with the only other elf that was a warden back at the keep.
"The only improvement you'll be making is in the Beyond, for if you so much as touch me, that will be where you are heading, human." She bit back the words, her tone icy and bitter.
"Ouch," Anders said mournfully.
"Just be quiet you two!" Alistair shot in warning, raising his hand. "I thought I heard something up ahead."
There is was again, a faint rustling in the bushes a little way ahead, to the right. Velanna stepped in front of Alistair and his gaze fell on her rounded behind, without even planning to do so. He blushed and averted his eyes.
"I hear, Commander. I can shapeshift into a bird and fly up ahead to scout the area."
He nodded at her, and the whole party waited on edge as she became a yellow wagtail and left.
"You'd think she'd change into a more ominous bird," Anders mused.
Velanna returned. "Bandits," she told Alistair as soon as she changed back. "Four of them, one of them wields a bow. The leader is a rogue. Other than that, the three that travel with them look green."
"How further up are they?" He asked quickly.
"A little further up the way, not much. The one with the bow is doing the rustling. He's heading this way."
"Right. Fernan?" Alistair turned to his rogue, and the young warden stood straight - Alistair smiled at this- and waited for his order. "Sneak." The young man grinned and disappeared from view.
There was a strangled noise from the bushes, and Alistair grinned.
"Teslin and Marcus, watch our backs." They nodded. "Oghren try not to pass out. You're coming with me." Oghren growled, his axe at the ready. "Anders and Velanna, you two are with me also." They smiled and fell into place behind him.
He saw them before they had taken ten more steps from where they had been standing. As they approached, Alistair felt a breeze on his right side, and a disembodied voice whispered a warning.
"Careful, Commander. Fire trap ahead. I'll disable it."
"Thanks, Fernan," he smiled, and motioned at the others to stop. They heard a familiar click and resumed their walk; they were fast approaching the bandits now, who looked taken aback at the fact that their fire trap had failed to work. One of them looked like he would throw up. Alistair made a mental note of this, he didn't want to spend three hours cleaning his boots that night.
"Ho, there! Are you lost?"
The leader, no doubt. He certainly looks cockier than the rest.
"No, not at all," Alistair answered, grinning like a mad man.
"Well, it's just too bad you ran into us, then!" The leader retorted, obviously thinking he could beat up a warrior and a weak looking guy wearing a dress. His eyes briefly rested on Velanna and he made a mental note to save her from death. She was gorgeous.
Velanna caught the look and bristled and Anders noticed this and chuckled softly.
Then the leader did something incredibly stupid, probably thinking to catch them off guard. He lunged at Alistair.
Oghren bellowed behind him, his beserker nature taking the best of him, while Velanna pointed a cone of cold directly at the three bandits.
It was an extremely short battle that ended in victory for them. Alistair didn't even break into a sweat.
"Time to loot!" He said cheerfully. Teslin, Marcus and Fernan complied and soon they were ten sovereigns richer.
"Nothing like some bandits to put a spring into one's step, eh Commander?" Anders gave a wistful sigh.
...
They camped close to a small village, and decided to check it out. They needed some supplies and welcomed the thought of eating a decent meal for a change.
"Wonder if there is a brothel here?" Anders asked thoughtfully.
Teslin burst out laughing. "Why, Anders! Didn't think you'd actually be interested in that? Don't you go around telling everyone how the ladies love you? You're not actually thinking of paying for that kind of entertainment, now, are you?"
"Nah, I get by just fine! I was thinking that maybe our Commander here would like to...um..."
"Buck the forbidden horse?" Oghren said cheerfully behind them.
They all burst out laughing and Alistair blushed deeply.
"Really, I have no need for...for...that." He stammered.
"Ah, but all men have needs," Anders shot back.
"I'm not even going to listen to this stupid conversation," Velanna's angry comment was heard above the laughter. "I'm walking ahead, and will probably arrive before you fools do." She changed into the yellow wagtail again and flew off.
"Just lay off, all of you," Alistair muttered, his neck now turning red as well. "Truly, I don't understand what the point of all this is here..."
"The point is that you are still a virgin!" Anders exclaimed while looking at him in total and utter surprise. "We don't understand how a grown man who is...how old are you again?"
"Twenty-three." He replied, keeping his eyes on the road ahead and walking a little faster.
"Right, twenty-three, can still remain a virgin? Do any of you here-"
"Shut it, Anders," Alistair practically growled at him.
"As you wish, Commander," Anders grinned. "Oh, look! Villagers!"
The villagers had curiously piled around the only road that ran through the dismal little town, which consisted of an inn and a few scattered homes here and there. There wasn't even a Chantry.
A woman suddenly called out, her voice cracked and old.
"You, strangers. We don't like strangers. Begone, you!"
"And friendly too! Now that's a plus!" Anders quipped.
They made their way to the inn, which had the name "The Crow Inn" on a dilapidated board on top of the door.
The innkeeper was struck dumb for three minutes. He didn't understand how there could be seven strangers in front of him. Apparently he wasn't used to anyone coming into his inn at all.
"Um," he managed to say while he blinked at them.
"Hello! I was wondering if we could have a nice meal here before we went on our way?" Alistair asked kindly.
The man blinked again, then the whole sentence seemed to finally make sense to him.
"Oh! Yes. Please, sit down, I'll tell my wife to prepare some food for you." He motioned to the only table and four chairs in the room.
"Er..." Alistair said, as he looked at the chairs. "There are seven of us."
"Oh! Certainly. Let me just get some extra chairs for you." The man sprang to life and hurried about.
"Are we going to sit on those?" Velanna nodded to the dust-encrusted chairs with disgust.
"I can clean them off for you," Anders said immediately.
"Ugh! Get away from me you pathetic human!" She held out her staff, and Anders backed away, smiling nervously.
"I thought you already knew she's a bitch?" Alistair leaned over to Anders and whispered. And Velanna changed into a black cat and hissed before running off.
Anders sighed in mock despair. "She is so beautiful. You can't blame me for trying. Oh well," he shrugged as they sat on the chairs and waited to eat the first meal that hadn't been cooked by Alistair in the seven days they had been travelling.
...
The inn ran out of food. Six Grey Wardens, all men, proved too much for them to handle. They bought their last wheel of cheese at Alistair's insistence and walked off and out of the village.
They arrived at camp, where Velanna was purring at herself, licking her paws. She had obviously had a nice meal of mice and birds. She changed back into herself, and walked away to her tent, without even a greeting to the rest, which, truth be told did not bother them at all.
Alistair flung himself near the fire and took out his journal.
We arrived at a village today after we took care of some bandits. We made some coin looting their bodies, so now we own more ingredients for me to cook something else tomorrow. Ha ha.
I'm getting the distinct impression that all the darkspawn in Ferelden are now in Orlais. We haven't seen any so far, and we're a very short distance from the Frostback Mountains as it is.
I hope that Anders stops trying to get on Velanna's good side. She doesn't have one. Hmm, maybe her arse though.
Did I just write that? Crossing it out now! No. Why should I? Nobody is going to read this anyway, right?
Then, underneath that:
Total earnings today: 10 sovereigns
Total money spent on food: 1 sovereign
Total money spent on supplies: 30 silver
He sighed and closed his journal. He was a bit tired, so he bid everyone goodnight and headed for his bedroll, dropping the journal into his pack before he took off his armor.
He fell asleep immediately and didn't even realize that he hadn't told anyone to watch over the camp that night. Teslin and Oghren both shrugged at this and continued drinking. The rest just went into their tents. Nobody stayed awake to stand watch.
That would prove to be a problem for all of them soon enough.
A/N: Next chapter, the Warden Commander of Orlais makes an appearance, lol.