CHAPTER 5

"She looks like she could do with a good bath." Alistair commented, watching from across the fire as Briar wolfed down her food. He had been polite when they first met and not commented on the atrocious smell coming from her, he did have some manners.

That and if she was truly the hellcat her brother had painted her as, Alistair didn't want to find his bits and bobs on the ground for insulting her.

He surreptitously was studying her and trying to keep up with the conversation he was attempting to have with Duncan, about the upcoming venture into the Korcari Wilds.

Duncan spared a glance at his latest recruit, admitting to himself that a good scrubbing wouldn't hurt her any. However... "There isn't time, if she wants one, perhaps after obtaining..." He trailed off, realizing Daveth was trying to overhear them.

Ser Jory had been standing at the fire with his hands clasped behind his back, frowning into the flames. When Duncan and Alistair stood up, he snapped out of his reverie and gave them his full attention, the frown deepening.

"Briar, Daveth, if you're finished?" Duncan posed it as a question though they both immediately tossed their trenchers into the fire and stood up, giving him their full attention. "Now that you're fed and rested, I have a task for the three of you."

Briar stared at him curiously, feeling Daveth fidgiting beside her.

"The Joining requires Darkspawn blood, enough for the each of you." Duncan said calmly, ignoring Ser Jory's sudden green pallor and Daveth's increased squirming. "One vial each."

"Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like whatever he's about to say next?" Daveth sighed.

"You three will go out into the Korcari wilds and retrieve the blood," Duncan said, ignoring all three recruits now pale faces.

"And as junior member of the order, I'll be going with you." Alistair said, hoping that would ease their tension just a little bit, especially Ser Jory, who looked like he was going to have to bend over and place his head between his knees. "Just to make sure everything goes... alright."

"While you're out there, I have another task for you." Duncan said slowly, this time fixing his stare on Alistair.

"Is it part of the Joining?" Briar asked, drawing his attention to herself and meeting his gaze coolly.

"No, it is not, but it's just as important. There is an old ruin in the wilds, it used to be a Grey Warden's base, but now..." He sighed softly. "There should be a cache, holding some very important documents. I need you to retrieve these documents."

"What kind of documents?" She next asked, her brow furrowing.

"Treaties, if you must know." Duncan sighed heavily, looking ancient and tired, even though his posture was straight and strong. "I don't think we'll need them but it never hurts to... have a reminder of past promises. This is not a part of the Joining ritual but it must be done."

"Are you going to tell us what the Joining actually is?" Ser Jory asked with a hint of trepidation in his tone, clearing his throat when Daveth actually shot him a scornful look.

"No. All I will say is that it is a heavy price we Grey Wardens pay but it is necessary."

The three new recruits all exchanged looks.

***

The Korcari Wilds were unlike anything Briar had ever seen before. The place was shrouded in mist, murky swamps to her left and right as they followed a thin but well pounded trail.

"I don't like this..." Ser Jory was saying from behind her, walking alongside Daveth while Alistair brought up the rear. "I didn't think we'd be doing something... something like this..."

"Well what did you think being a Grey Warden was going to be like?" Daveth sneered contemptuously. "Tea and cakes?"

Jory ignored the jibe, scowling slightly. "I just thought... that I had already proved myself, what more need I prove?"

"This is something we have to do and there is no point in whining about it." Briar said sharply, throwing him a look over her shoulder. "Just pay attention to the matter on hand."

In turn, Jory looked over his own shoulder at Alistair. "Shouldn't you be up there?" He demanded pointedly.

"This is your quest, I'm just here to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible." Alistair replied with his easy grin.

Silence fell on the group again as they plodded through, Daveth murmuring old stories about the Chasind that he had heard, his eyes darting every which way as if expecting the 'Wilder' folk to come leaping from the mists and attack, ready to eat their still warm flesh after they had been brutally murdered.

He had just gotten started on legends of 'Flemeth' when the first bays of wolves reached them, all four instantly drawing swords.

Battle drove all thoughts from Briar's mind, this was simple. This didn't require her participation in useless conversation or dwelling on things she couldn't change. What it did require was concentrating on the fighting, on killing as many enemies as she could and doing it quickly and efficiently.

It was something that required her complete concentration on one simple, uncomplicated task.

Kill or be killed.

***

Alistair watched quietly as Briar cleaned her sword, taking note of the rather elegant hilt. He didn't miss the reverence in her gestures either, a frown marring his forehead. She had killed with a swift proficiency that told him she had been training for years, mastering her chosen form of art with a finesse that was rather chilling.

"Were those werewolves, you think?" Jory asked, studying a carcass with a would be casual air, nudging the body with the toe of his boot.

"I think you'd know the difference between a regular wolf and a werewolf." Daveth shook his head with a long suffering sigh. "Why? You get bit?"

"Not badly." Jory replied defensively.

"You're scratched."

Briar glanced up into Alistair's face, surprised that he was so close to her and she hadn't realized it until now. She followed his gaze to her forearm, shrugging. "It's not that bad."

"But it could become infected." He said gently, reaching into his faded brown leather sporran and pulled out a small blue vial. "Usually, I'd make a poultice with this but... I think a drop or two will do the trick."

She watched intently as he took her arm gently and tended to what seemed to be nothing but a mere scratch. When Alistair's firm but tender fingers probed the scratch, it stung and became evident that the scratch went a bit deeper than she had thought.

"A drop of this... A bandage..." Alistair said, doing each action as he said it, finally leaning away from her with a satisfied smile. "Not the best job in the world but it'll do."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

***

Not without a bit more whining, encountering a scene that had told them a skirmish had taken place, a wounded soldier and a darkspawn trap they finally located the remains of the old Warden base.

Even though the wilds were slowly but surely taking it back, the ruins still retained vestiges of former splendor. They proceeded cautiously, making their way through the bramble and granite debris, always ready just incase they encountered more darkspawn.

Briar was never, ever going to forget her first encounter with the darkspawn, a rather small band -according to Alistair, she personally thought twenty of them was more like a small army- for as long as she lived. She had been able to get past their grotesque appearance and crude grunts that seemed to be their way of expressing excitement.

Excitement at killing the humans no doubt.

The way the darkspawn operated though, was like watching a very well trained unit, they didn't vocally communicate with each other, unless that's what the grunting was, but seemed to move by some unheard command.

It was unnerving.

"I think... that might be it." Alistair said, picking his way through what appeared to have been an armory, though now it was mostly a stone floor that was being overrun with weedgrass and young trees and the tumbled remains of what might have been a wall."Yeah, this is it..." He finished breaking the rotten wood, gingerly easing his hand inside the chest and felt around, frowning. "It's empty."

"Empty? How can it be empty?"

Daveth shot Jory a look, shaking his head. "Easy,someone managed to open that lock and take out the treaties."

"But who?"

Daveth was now looking past them all, his face paling beneath the flecks of blood that coated it and pointed. "Ask her."