So excited! I just love you guys. :D
Bioware owns everything, I just colour out of the lines.
I Got to Meet the King! Jealous?
The rest of the journey was easier on both of us. We chatted easily about Ferelden, me talking about the things I liked the most, and Duncan educating me more about it. He told me about the Orlesian empire that had conquered Ferelden eighty years ago, and how it was driven out by the late King Maric almost three decades ago. The story grew as he told the epic of the Battle of the River Dane, and Teryn Loghain's victory there. He then told me about King Maric's son, the current king, Cailan. But when it came to the Grey Wardens he didn't mention anything except for the fact there was two other recruits waiting for us already at Ostagar.
When Ostagar came into site on the twelfth day, I could not help but stare.
The ruin was divided into two sides, a bridge connecting it across a gorge. From where we were standing you could see people running around tents on one side. The other housed a tower that ran up into the sky.
"Wow," I breathed. The area had this ethereal beauty to it, completely detached from all the commotion that was happening in and around it.
"How old is it?" I asked. The history geek inside of me was making me giddy.
"Since the Avvar warriors ruled this land," he answered. "Long before the first Divine ever rose up to power."
"More than nine hundred years," I whispered. I could not imagine how many battles the structure had seen. How many people had walked through its walls? I loved places like that, cut off from the world and so full of untapped history.
"We will have to go around to the left side, were the tower is. On the other side lies the Kocari Wilds, and I do not wish to traverse through it."
I followed him, but I would stare up at the decaying building every so often to commit every detail to memory.
As we walked into the fortress, three men walked towards us. One was fully armored in heavy breastplate armour that shone bright gold in the morning air, the other two were not dressed as nicely, I expected them to be guards to this man.
"Ho there, Duncan!" the regal man exclaimed, a wide grin on his face.
Duncan shook the man's hand looking fairly surprised. "King Cailan? I didn't expect-"
"A royal welcome?" the king interrupted. He was literally glowing with joy. "I was beginning to think you'd miss all the fun."
So this is the king. I like him, I thought. Up close he was quite handsome. He had long golden hair to match his armour, and light green-grey eyes. His face was soft, with the exception of a strong nose and the threats of a beard.
"Not if I could help it, your Majesty," Duncan replied smoothly.
"Then I'll have the mighty Duncan at my side in battle after all! Glorious!" his eyes misted for a split second before he returned to the conversation. "The other Wardens told me you had found another promising recruit. I take it this is she?" he looked at me with another smile.
"Allow me to introduce you your Majesty," Duncan offered.
"There's no need to be so formal Duncan," the king chastised gently. "We'll be shedding blood together, after all. Ho there friend. Might I know your name?"
I was shocked, and despite that I smiled at him because of his easygoing nature. The ruler of Ferelden wanted to know my name. I was sure this was a step up from my far gone university days. The only thing that was worrying was I wasn't sure if his trusting and kind qualities were good things for a king to possess.
"My name is Abigail, your Majesty. It is a great pleasure to meet you." I thought about bowing, but that seemed a little bit like overkill.
"Pleased to meet you! The Grey Wardens are desperate to bolster their numbers, and I, for one, am glad to help them. Tell me, where do you hail from?"
Uh-oh. I looked to Duncan for help, but he just observed me thoughtfully.
"Um, I am from a very faraway place," I attempted.
"I thought your accent was different," the king declared. "What country does it come from?"
Great, now I'm the person who has the accent. Why didn't anyone tell me?
"I'm afraid that should be a tale for another time," I said pathetically.
He did not seem to notice. "I cannot wait!" he declared. I, for one, sighed a breath of relief.
"For now, let me be the first to welcome you to Ostagar. The Wardens will benefit greatly with you in their ranks," he said enthusiastically.
"You are most kind," I said, bowing my head slightly.
"I'm sorry to cut this short, but I should return to my tent. Loghain waits eagerly to bore me with his strategies'," the king sighed dramatically.
Duncan spoke again. "Your uncle sends his greetings and reminds you that Redcliffe forces could be here in less than a week."
King Cailan barked out a laugh. "Eamon just wants in on all the glory. We've won three battles against these monsters already and tomorrow should be no different."
"That sounds good," I said. But I wasn't overly convinced. Not compared to what Duncan had been telling me.
"Over confident, some would say. Right Duncan?" he laughed again.
"Your Majesty, I'm not certain the Blight can be ended as quickly as you might wish," Duncan said seriously.
"I'm not even sure if this is a true Blight. Plenty of darkspawn, but alas, no archdemon has been sighted," he said sadly.
"Disappointed, your Majesty?" Duncan asked carefully.
"I'd hoped for a war like in the tales, a King riding out on the battle field with the fabled Grey Wardens. But I suppose this will have to do," He said defeated. "Now I must go before Loghain sends a search party. Farewell, Grey Wardens."
I crossed my arms over my chest and bowed. Duncan merely watched as the King turned back to the camp with his entourage.
Duncan looked at me once the king was out of listening distance. "What the king said is true. They've won several battles against the darkspawn here."
The worry on his face made me smile grimly. "I hear a "but" in there somewhere."
He nodded and we began walking to the camp ourselves. "Despite the victories so far, the horde grows larger with each passing day. By now they look to outnumber us. I know there is an archdemon behind this. But I cannot ask him to act solely on my feeling."
I understood that, compared to at home, Duncan was getting off easy. But I figured that I should probably have been in an asylum myself at that point.
"What would you have him do then?" I looked down into the gorge for a split second.
"Wait for reinforcements. We sent a call out to the Grey Wardens of Orlais, but it will be many days before they can join us. The number of Ferelden Grey Wardens is small and we must look to Teryn Loghain to make up the difference. We need to proceed with the Joining Ritual without delay."
I didn't hesitate. "What do I need to do."
"Feel free to explore the camp as you wish, just don't leave it for the time being. When you are ready, there is a Grey Warden named Alistair. Find him and tell him you are ready. There are two other recruits as well. If you wish you can get to know them before we start. Until then I have business to attend to."
I nodded, looking at the bottom of the gorge again. "Sounds like a plan."
"By the way, are you really planning to tell the King where you come from?" His question made me bite my lip.
"I guess I should make a decision on whether that should be public knowledge or not."
"It is your choice to make," he said, and then left me on the edge of the bridge.
I sat down, looking on the forest on the edge of the gorge. It looked dark and wild, sort of like the way I pictured the forest to be like in the Wizard of Oz. I contemplated what I was about to become. A Grey Warden, a warrior who bows to no king, and does what she must to protect the fate of Thedas. I figured I was about to change. Just like the forest in the story. It seemed a little dark at first, but Dorothy still traveled through it. The forest could have turned out evil or benevolent, depending on how one saw the story. The trees were evil, but the tin man was not. Who was I to be. Whether or not I was going to like that change, remained to be seen.
Just like a fairy tale.