A/N: I'm so sorry for the delay in update! I've had a long period of examinations and the stress ultimately got to me—I fell sick twice and I had no energy to get back up. I thank those who still stick to this story and I promise I will update again soon! As of now, I still have to study for my finals and I will do my best to write frequently and keep you guys coming back. Thank you for the hits and reviews!

XIII: A Demon's Fate

Ser Perth ordered his men to wait outside the main hall as he motioned for Logan and the rest to follow him. The man pushed open the giant, mahogany double doors and took several steps more before pausing, a look of shock crossing his face as he witnessed the scene before them. Alistair peered over the swordsman's shoulder and let out a horrified gasp. Logan watched, rooted to the spot, as Bann Teagan danced around the room—sometimes dropping to roll on the carpeted floor whilst laughing wildly—in front of Lady Isolde, the guards and a young boy that looked particularly pleased.

"Is that Bann Teagan—"

"—dancing?" Alexandra finished for her twin brother, both of them looking rather mortified. For a man that had always been serious like his brother, Bann Teagan certainly looked out of place as he began to leap around and making strange, hooting noises in front of his sister-in-law and nephew.

"Has he gone mad?" Leliana asked, as Ser Perth slowly approached the Arlessa and the boy, with the rest trailing behind him cautiously.

"Arlessa," Ser Perth spluttered, looking rapidly from Isolde to Teagan, "What on earth has happened to Bann Teagan?"

Isolde opened her mouth to reply, but Connor stepped forward, glaring angrily at the intruders. "What are you doing in my castle?" Connor growled, his voice sending chills up Logan's spine. It didn't seem like it could belong to a boy of no older than age ten.

Alistair seemed to notice that as well and shuffled his feet nervously, feeling disgust build up in him. What had they done to the boy? Was he actually possessed? Was he actually the reason why everything was out of control in Redcliffe?

"Possessed," Bethany whispered fearfully, her eyes widening as Connor snapped his fingers and caused Teagan to fall silent immediately, "His soul… it is buried underneath this intrusion in his body. A demon has taken over him."

"We're here to… talk things out," Logan began calmly, stepping forward.

Connor narrowed his eyes at Logan. "You killed my army," he said, and Logan instantly knew that he was not speaking to the son of Arl Eamon, like Bethany had pointed out. "You are intruders—and most unwelcome, at that! I'm not stupid—I know what you're here for. You're here to kill me, aren't you? You're going to kill me because I'm causing all those poor villagers out there to suffer! Well, I won't stop and you can't stop me either."

"No," Logan said, "This isn't right. You have to stop this." He eyed Bann Teagan, who was still smiling like an idiot to no one in particular. "You can't keep this up forever."

"And why not?" snapped the possessed boy. "It's simple, if you think smartly enough. If I do this, then my father can live. My father won't have to die from that stupid poisoning and everything will be fine!"

"Are we talking to Connor or are we talking to the demon?" Garrett quipped suddenly, staring at Connor with a bewildered expression.

"I would like to think that it is both," Connor replied coolly, "It seems like a fair deal. With his permission, I can see the real world through a human's eyes. In return, I have given him his father's life."

"He's not actually able to walk around, is he?" Alistair countered, "Is he still sick in his bed?"

The boy scowled. "At least he's still alive!"

Beside Connor, Bann Teagan clapped his hands enthusiastically and guffawed. "That's right, that's right!" Teagan exclaimed, "My brother is still alive and all will be well!"

"Shut up, uncle," Connor snarled, and Bann Teagan fell silent again. The boy turned back to Logan. "Well? Do you still have any objections?"

"Many, actually," Sirius voiced out, glaring at Connor, "You need to go, demon, and out of Connor's body. For good. Or we'll have to rip you out of him."

Connor smiled. "You don't know how to do that."

"Actually, I do," Jowan said, stepping forward, "And it can be done immediately."

Logan lifted an eyebrow and glanced at Jowan. "What are you planning—"

"No!" Connor yelled angrily, "You are the apostate mother brought in for me! What are you doing up here and out of your wretched cell? Get back in there!" Logan could see that the demon inside the boy was losing its patience and was getting fearful—perhaps it somehow knew that Jowan practiced blood magic, and perhaps that was a threat to its grip on the young Guerrin boy.

Isolde let out a devastated sob. "Connor, please," she bemoaned, bursting into tears, "Stop doing this, my son…" She knelt down and latched her hand on his wrist and pulled her son close, though Logan suspected that it was doing nothing to improve the situation.

And suddenly, Connor looked up at his mother again with a different look on his face. It was almost surprising to realize the demon had let go of the boy, but Logan had a feeling that it would come back and take over Connor again.

"Mother?" he whispered, tears welling up in his eyes as Isolde held onto his hands now.

"Oh, my dear Connor," Isolde sobbed, "Stay with your mother, please—don't let that demon get you!"

And then, just as quickly as Connor had returned to his normal self, the demon returned again, almost as though it was toying with Isolde's feelings for fun.

Connor yanked his hand away from Isolde and shouted out in frustration and anger. "Get your hands off me, woman! How many times have I told you not to cry or make so much noise? Father is resting upstairs—you would do well to think of him before yourself!"

"Enough of your pretences, demon," Sten said, "It is time you left."

Morrigan stepped into view and scrutinized Connor. "Perhaps I can put him in a temporary prison," she said, drawing her staff.

Connor widened his eyes in fear and rage.

"No!" he bellowed, and quickly pushed Isolde aside and made for the door, but not before commanding the bewitched soldiers and Teagan to attack Logan and the others. There was hardly any time to catch the boy before the soldiers lunged at them, swords and bows at the ready. Logan could hear Isolde screaming for her son as she dropped to the ground, consumed by her grief, knowing that she wouldn't be able to get him back—not while that demon still remained in there.

Arrows flew past his face and hit several soldiers squarely in their chests and faces, paving the way for Logan to stun Teagan with a mind blast. The Bann stumbled backwards and fell onto his back, rendered unconscious because of the effectiveness of Logan's spell. Good, Logan mused, that's one less man dying today.

Alistair bashed several soldiers with his shield but made sure he didn't kill most of them, knowing that they were under the influence of the demon. After felling most of the Arl's men, it seemed that the trance was finally lifted as Bann Teagan awoke with a loud groan and sat up, looking around confusedly.

"What happened?" the Bann mumbled, rubbing his temples. "I remember seeing Connor…"

"He—the demon—had all of you under a spell," Logan explained, as Isolde helped him to his feet, "We tried to spare your lives, but some were killed off in the process."

"Deaths that will not have been in vain," Teagan sighed, looking over at the unlucky ones who had been killed off by Leliana and the twins, "What exactly happened?"

Garrett hid a grin behind his mouth. "Do you really want to know?"

Teagan tilted his head to the left, looking at all of them with a questioning look. "Of course I do," he insisted, "I didn't kill anyone, did I?"

"No, but you were doing a pretty bad imitation of the Remigold," Alistair said, rather amused at the recollection, "Or maybe it was an imitation of a monkey trying to do the Remigold. It was quite the sight, Bann Teagan."

Teagan looked horrified as Logan smiled mischievously in his direction, silently confirming what Alistair had said. "It was the demon," Logan said, as an afterthought, "So we know that wasn't really you."

"Maker," Teagan moaned, shaking his head, "The demon… I can't remember what it looked like. And where is it?"

"Upstairs," Morrigan replied, "'Twas your nephew, in fact."

"The demon possessed Connor," Alistair amended hastily, "It wasn't Connor's fault."

"Possessed," Teagan repeated worriedly, "We must force that demon out of him as soon as possible. Do you mages have a way?" The Bann looked mainly at Logan, who immediately felt the intangible load on his shoulders press down even more on him.

Someone cleared his throat behind. "I have a way," Jowan offered, stepping forward, "But I don't think all of you will like it much."

"If it's a way to save Connor, then I will hear it," Teagan said, choosing to ignore the fact that this apostate in front of him was actually supposed to be locked in the cells downstairs, not walking freely about. He would have to deal with that matter later.

Jowan tugged at the collar of his robes nervously. "I can use blood magic—"

"Out of the question!" Alistair exclaimed, his unhappiness flooding back to his face, "I will not allow that—"

"Look, it's the only way!" Jowan yelled back, "But…" He looked to Bann Teagan. "Someone will have to give up their life for the blood magic to be able to work."

Isolde looked up tearfully at Jowan. "I will give up my life to save my son. I value his life more than my own!"

Teagan narrowed his eyes, clearly not liking the way things were turning out. Even though he had offered to listen to Jowan's suggestion, he immediately rejected it the moment he heard the term 'blood magic'. It was a disgusting practice—one that Teagan felt should be destroyed and lost to time so no one else would follow suit and tread the path of such horrific corruptions. "Isolde, are you—"

"See, this is why I don't approve!" Alistair interjected again. He made a movement towards Jowan, but Logan held him back firmly in place. "I will not let another innocent die—what more because of blood magic—"

"Calm down," Logan said sternly, "No one agreed to it yet."

"Yet?" Alistair looked up at Logan lividly. "We are not going to use his method. No, Logan. We can't."

"Your templar ideals seem to blind you," Morrigan quipped, "'Tis only right we use the fastest way to save Arl Eamon's heir—or would you prefer he attempt to conceive another with the Arlessa?"

"I don't want Connor to die," Alistair growled, "Or anyone else for that matter!"

"You seem to demand a lot—even things that can never exist if the other is chosen," Morrigan crossed her arms over her chest and looked at Alistair irritably, "'Tis more important to save the boy, Connor, than anything else."

"Yes, I agree, but blood magic—"

"Alright!" Logan cut in frustratingly, "We won't use Jowan's suggestion then. Do we have another way?"

"I do." Bethany looked briefly at Isolde before she turned back to Logan, entirely sure that this was the only way to save Connor—and the safest. She remembered her Harrowing, and how they had used lyrium to enter the Fade. Since the demon is of the Fade, she thought, someone could enter the Fade and destroy it, and no one would have to die just to save the life of another.

She quickly explained her idea and found that most were agreeable to it.

"That's a brilliant idea," Alistair said, smiling at her encouragingly, "No, honestly. It's the safest and no one would have to die!"

"And where exactly do you intend to find said lyrium?" Morrigan voiced out irritably, "'Tis something no one here has considered yet. An admirable plan, yes, but a useless one all the same without what it needs."

"The Circle Tower," Jowan replied, "We could travel to the Circle Tower and request the aid of the mages there. They have lyrium, remember?"

"They did use it for our Harrowing," Logan agreed, the idea becoming more and more appealing to him as the seconds went by. He didn't want the Arlessa to give up her life either, though he knew that wanting too much was sometimes never wise. But if we have a chance, we must take it.

"So can we do this?" Alistair asked, forgetting his anger, "Can we go to the Circle Tower and request for aid?"

"I'll have to leave some people here to watch over the Arl and his family," Logan said, and added hastily, "Especially Connor. We can't predict what that demon will do—it's only safe if there are people keeping a close watch on him."

"You know, I think I'll just stay here," Garrett volunteered immediately, "I'm not quite sure I like the idea of setting foot in that place again. And Greagoir—oh, there will be more hell to pay if we bump into him, too."

Logan smiled briefly at his cousin. "And let me face the Knight-Commander alone? No chance, Hawke."

Garrett rolled his eyes and shrugged. "Fine," he said, "You're the boss."

"We'll come with you, too," the twins said in unison. Alexandra looked hopefully at Logan. "We've been wanting to get out of here for a while, anyway. Redcliffe's been boring—oops, sorry Teagan!"

"Yeah," Sirius added hastily, "I mean, it's not that we didn't like helping out at Redcliffe, especially these few days—"

Teagan, despite the heavy tension that had settled itself in his heart, laughed. "It's quite alright," he said, "It's also just as well—Logan needs excellent fighters to accompany him to the Circle Tower. I'm not expecting you to stay in Redcliffe forever, even though you came here from Highever after—" The Bann paused, and decided against continuing his sentence.

Sirius cleared his throat and looked away, feeling a little awkward now that almost everyone's eyes were on him and his sister. They hadn't told anyone what had happened yet, except for Bann Teagan—and the only reason why they told him was because Arl Eamon and Bann Teagan knew Bryce and Eleanor Cousland; it was only right that they deserved to know what had happened to their friends.

Alexandra caught Logan looking at them curiously and immediately felt a little regretful that they offered their assistance. She knew he'd be questioning them sooner or later—perhaps out of concern rather than just being nosy—but hoped that he would be too preoccupied and eventually forget about it. It was hard to talk—or even think—about what took place that night at the Couslands' castle. She wasn't sure whether she would want to relive that moment by talking about it again, too.

Logan looked away awkwardly, sensing their tension, and faced Sten. "You up for more traveling?"

The Qunari grunted. "Always, if it takes us closer to destroying the Blight."

Logan nearly sighed in frustration as he remembered the impending Blight. He had been so occupied with Redcliffe's situation that he had actually forgotten about the Blight and the archdemon. Duncan would laugh, Logan mused, A Grey Warden, forgetting his most important duty!

"Of course," he finally replied, and turned to the rest that he had chosen to leave behind in Redcliffe. "I'm counting on you to keep everything under control."

"Don't worry, we will," Alistair said, and then pulled Logan aside, out of earshot. "Are you sure you don't want to take the witch?"

Logan rolled his eyes. "She has a name," he said, "and I suspect she's a little injured from the fighting in the dungeons and even before that. Get Bethany to heal her, will you? And Alistair—she's not that bad a person."

The former templar grimaced. "It's only because you like her, that's why you're defending her. If you were in my shoes, you wouldn't like it either."

Logan patted Alistair encouragingly on the shoulder. "Be strong," he said, "You can always choose to face the wall and stick your fingers in your ears whenever she's in the same room as you. It's as simple as that."

"Fine," Alistair muttered with reluctance, "But don't expect anything to change when you get back."

"I wouldn't dare," Logan said with a smile, as he turned to leave. The selected few headed for the main door, led by Logan, and almost left the hall when a piercing, blood-curdling scream filled the upper floor. It was almost chilling to know that it could even be heard from one floor below—there wasn't exactly much space for any kind of noise to ricochet off the walls and down to where they were standing, and Logan instantly bolted for the stairway that led to the second floor.

Alistair followed suit with a worried expression on his face, and was soon followed by Garrett and Teagan. The rest stayed behind, on Teagan's orders—"In case anything happens, you can assist us later!"—and watched on apprehensively as the four men ascended the stairs with frantic speeds.

The moment they reached the second floor, three soldiers lunged themselves at the intruders, howling and screaming with tones that indicated the loss of their sanities—and perhaps souls, as Logan managed to look briefly into one of their empty eyes before dodging the heavy swing of the sword. He stepped backwards swiftly with Garrett by his side and cast the soldiers into temporary paralysis. With a snap of the fingers, the soldiers fell to the ground, unconscious.

Garrett bestowed Logan with an impressed look. "Where'd you learn that?"

Logan smirked in spite of the situation. "Morrigan does have some neat tricks."

"Come on." Teagan urged the three to follow him as he cautiously approached what seemed to be Connor's room. He cast a worrying glance at a door on the other end of the hallway, but quickly concentrated on the task at hand. Logan silently noted that that would have to be Arl Eamon's room, and made a mental note to visit the Arl after everything was settled. The Bann roughly kicked open the door and dashed into the room, only to see his nephew cowering in a corner, tears streaming down his face. Almost immediately, Logan could feel Bann Teagan softening considerably.

It was not wise to let one's guard down when a demon still lurks—especially when it is within its chosen host. Teagan made to approach his nephew when Logan held him firmly back with a strong grip. The Bann glared witheringly at Logan, but the anger subsided when Logan shook his head tersely. "It's not safe."

Teagan looked from the crying boy to Logan. "But that's my nephew," he said softly, "If anything, I should be allowed to approach him first."

Logan frowned disapprovingly, but released Teagan reluctantly as he caught Alistair shaking his head. He's just a boy, Logan could already hear Alistair say. It's obvious the demon isn't predominant right now.

Garrett exchanged dark looks with his cousin as Teagan knelt down to usher his nephew out of his current position—he was sitting, curled up in a corner of the room with dead (or unconscious, Logan couldn't tell) bodies lying around and crying his eyes out—with a soothing tone. "It's all right, Connor," Teagan said softly, holding his nephew's hand, "Everything's going to be okay."

Connor looked up at his uncle, and then at the rest of the men warily with his reddened eyes. "You—you're not going to kill me?" he sobbed.

Logan cleared his throat and forced himself to look at Connor and gave the boy the benefit of the doubt. "I'm not," Logan reassured him, his tone persuasive and gentle. "Not if I can help you in any other way, of course."

Connor swallowed hard and nodded his head, as though offering a silent consolation to himself that there was no danger. He let his uncle help him up and he dusted himself, glancing briefly at the bodies on the ground before shuddering and huddling closer to Teagan. The Bann looked at Logan with an apologetic smile. "I think I've got things under control here," he told them confidently, holding his nephew close. "You must hurry to the Circle and return with the lyrium."

"We'll be back quickly," Alistair said, placing a hand on Logan's shoulder and urging the mage to leave with him.

"Promise?" Connor's sob seemed to reach out only to Logan, his reddened, tear-filled eyes concentrated only on the mage.

Logan bit lightly on his lower lip, uncomfortable with the way Connor was putting his hopes onto him instead of someone else like Alistair, who was closer to him like family than anyone else besides Bann Teagan. Without hesitating a second longer, Logan nodded, forcing himself to look at Connor right in the eye. "I promise," he said, before turning around to Alistair and Garrett.

It didn't take them very long to reach the stone steps until Teagan's scream echoed from inside Connor's room. Logan whirled around, his eyes flashing dangerously as he drew his staff and charged back into the room, with Garrett right beside him and Alistair calling out for them. "Hey, don't do anything rash—"

But what they saw next couldn't be anything short of horrific—horrific enough that Garrett immediately hurled an ice spell in Connor's direction. The boy released his bleeding uncle—thankfully, Teagan was still alive but unconscious with deep cuts on his neck—and dodged the spell, snarling angrily at them. He stood upright and pointed in their direction, glaring. "How dare you ruin things for me and the boy!" yelled the demon inside the boy.

"Get out of him," Logan commanded sternly, stepping forward. "Or else we'll have to—"

Connor smiled. Or, the demon did. Either way, Logan stopped in mid-sentence and half-expected Alistair or Garrett to say something, but neither of them did. It was then that he realized that the three of them were trapped in a very slow crushing prison—each second seemed to cause the prison to tighten by the tiniest scale.

"You won't bear to kill the host," the demon said confidently, now striding up and down, eyeing each of the men that were now his prisoners. "Well," he stepped forward and looked from Logan to Garrett with a small knowing smile, "Some of you would, I am sure, if the situation calls for it—"

"We wouldn't!" Alistair retorted vehemently. "We'll find the safest way to get you out of Connor and then it's the end of the game for you—"

"Stupid, stupid templar," the demon said softly, glancing at Alistair, "Or is that what you once called yourself?" The boy stepped forward towards Alistair, who now recoiled instinctively but didn't move very far back—the prison was still keeping him hostage. "I know all about you…" the demon continued, smirking, "Your hopes… dreams… innermost desires." The demon let the last word drag a little longer, when Garrett made a noise of angry disapproval.

Alistair felt his face flush in spite of himself. This was no normal demon…

"How would you?" Logan spat, glancing at Connor, "You're a demon—we know that. If you think that manipulating the situation and tricking us into believing that you know everything about us would—"

"As a matter of fact, I do," the demon said, turning his attention on Logan, "I know what you want, too."

Logan rolled his eyes. "You don't know how stupid you are," he hissed, "There are people downstairs who will come up at any moment—"

"Then let them come," the demon said lazily, casting a sidelong glance at Logan before turning back to Bann Teagan, who was still unconscious on the carpeted floor. He knelt down and touched the cuts, causing Teagan to stir slightly. "Stupid man wouldn't let me down…"

"Don't touch him." Alistair's voice was firm, if not completely steeled. The sight disgusted him as much as it disgusted the mages on either side of him, but he knew that Connor was innocent. There had to be another way to save him—there would be no more bloodshed this time.

Connor smiled. "Whatever," he muttered, looking down at his bloodied fingernails, "You have no control over the boy anymore. He doesn't even know you, anyway. You're as much a part of this family as a wolf belongs with the sheep." The boy's lips stretched into a wider smile, mocking Alistair this time. "They don't want you around."

"That's not true!" Garrett fought back angrily, "It's just that damned Arlessa—"

"Garrett." Logan's voice was cold and firm as he glanced at his cousin. He shook his head, and Garrett reluctantly fell silent, but not without looking at Alistair as he did. The ex-templar seemed to be far more disturbed by the demon's words than the fact that they were trapped here, helpless. Logan knew it'd be useless to try and shout for help, for the door had been closed, but desperately hoped that someone—anyone—would come up and assist them.

The young Guerrin smiled at the temporary silence. "What shall I do with you, then?" he said, looking from Alistair to Garrett and finally to Logan, "A trip to the Fade? Permanently?"

Logan shuddered and glared icily at the possessed boy. "Don't be such a coward and face us in your true form, demon. Or are you too afraid that you'll lose your chance at freedom?"

"I'd sooner be a coward than a fool," Connor said, glaring pointedly at Logan. Suddenly, the three prisons tightened greatly with such an abruptness that all the air escaped from Logan's lungs. Behind him, Alistair and Garrett were facing the same plight. They had no more time to have small talk with the demon, but they couldn't exactly pry themselves away from the prison that was now seeking to crush them to death.

Connor laughed and sat down on the edge of the bed, watching as the three men struggled to break free.

Loganfelt his lungs and throat constrict as he fought to breathe, his angry stare still fixed on the boy that was now smirking at them. Connor was so focused on watching his victims die that he completely forgot that there were still people downstairs—people that would probably be on their way up at this very moment.

Leliana glanced up the stairway worriedly and turned back to the rest, who were all mirroring her sentiments. Logan and the others had been upstairs for far too long, and it scared her to think that something might have happened. She had never really faced demons in the past before—save for her personal ones that gnawed at her and haunted her constantly—but she knew enough to know that they were not forces to be trifled with or taken lightly.

Morrigan was the first to step forward, her eyes filled with an unsettling kind of concern that Leliana had never seen before. "If it is a fight the demon wants, then 'tis a fight it will receive," she said adamantly.

Arlessa Isolde looked horrified. "No," she spluttered, "Do not hurt my Connor—"

Morrigan scowled at the Arlessa and glared at the now whimpering woman. "You fool," she hissed, "Can you not see that your son has been lost to a greater demon of the Fade? Tell me, when you look at that boy, do you see an innocent boy toying with magic or a murderous demon with a thirst for blood?"

"Don't go there, Connor's a good kid," Sirius started darkly, shaking his head in disapproval, "He may be possessed, but it doesn't rule out the fact that he is still a victim of the situation. We must not hurt him at all costs."

"He is the Arl's son," Alexandra added for good measure. "How do you think he'll react when he wakes up?"

"If he wakes up," Morrigan countered coldly, crossing her arms over her chest. When she saw the looks of horror on the Arlessa and twins' faces, she added roughly, "Be practical, will you!"

"Enough!" roared Sten, drawing his greatsword and stepping forward, "We waste time squabbling like infants! Make a move, or I will!"

Everyone in the room fell silent at the Qunari's angry outburst. There have been only so many people that survived the anger of a Qunari warrior, and there have been stories of the violence they are capable of—most or all of them ending in a sickening bloodshed. The Qunari have been deemed as one of the most fearsome forces in the entirety of Thedas, and have been sought after as suitable reinforcements to the armies of several countries, but the Arishok had always declined. Perhaps such a terrifying army would lay waste to a country's enemies, but the Qunari were never known for loyalty to anyone else but themselves.

This could only mean that they would not regret killing something that was not one of their own.

Sten glared at everyone in the room. "Well?" he growled, and glanced at Leliana expectantly.

The former lay sister readied her bow and arrow and nodded to the flight of steps leading to where Logan and the others were. "We must not tarry," she said apologetically, "Demons are probably not known for their patience." Or lack thereof, she thought, as she ran up the steps with Morrigan and Sten following closely behind.

The door to Connor's room was already open, and Leliana could see the bodies of Logan, Alistair and Garrett suspended in midair. She heard Morrigan scowl behind her. "The demon has trapped them," she said, clearly agitated that they had to wait so long before coming up. "Find the boy and apprehend him!"

From inside, Connor leapt from his bed as the Qunari strode in, greatsword at the ready. "A Qunari?" he said with much interest, "This is… a rarity."

Sten grimaced. "I am not a trophy put up for display."

Leliana emerged beside him, followed by Morrigan. "Release them," Leliana commanded, "You don't want to suffer the consequences."

Connor laughed, shaking his head. "You can't bear to kill me. I practically have the boy hostage. I know the Arlessa and the Arl would not stand to see you kill their only son, even if it is because the entire village of Redcliffe has, presumably, fallen under my wrath."

"Too much confidence can be a bad thing," Morrigan said. Without batting an eyelash, she hurled a dangerously large fire spell at Connor, to which Alistair responded with an anguished cry.

"Hey! Don't kill him!" Alistair yelled, his brown eyes widening in fear.

Connor ducked out of the way and hissed angrily at Morrigan as he backed away into a corner. A number of Shades materialized from the ground and advanced toward the party. Sten stepped forward and swung his greatsword with surprising precision and cut them down, clearing the path to the boy.

"Get us out of here!" Garrett said angrily, clearly losing oxygen fast as the prisons crushed them further.

"The demon!" hissed Sten as Connor bolted out of the room and headed down the stairs, "We must apprehend it!"

"Don't hurt him—" Alistair began, but his words fell on deaf ears as Leliana and Sten ran out after the boy. Morrigan swung her staff in one swift movement and destroyed the crushing prisons, freeing the three men. Logan fell to his knees, coughing and gasping for air at the same time, relieved he hadn't met his end yet and glanced at Garrett, who looked annoyed beyond words.

"When I get my hands on that demon…" Garrett grumbled, the rest of his sentence turning into a series of incoherent growls.

Alistair wasted no time as he leapt to his feet with a flustered look on his face, made sure he had everything and dashed downwards after Leliana and Sten. Morrigan rolled her eyes and muttered something inaudible in an irritable tone, as Garrett and Logan stood up to find that their friend had already reached the first landing of the castle.

"That was fast," Garrett said, raising his eyebrows. "I haven't seen him run that fast since we saw that merchant selling cheese in Lothering."

Logan tried not to smile as the mental image of Alistair breaking apart from the main group and running towards the merchant's stall at breakneck speed after letting out an excited noise flashed in his mind. He regretted not stopping the ex-templar—it was the first night after Lothering that Alistair dumped a large chunk of cheese into the pot and caused everyone (except for Morrigan and himself, but Logan wasn't willing to believe that—Alistair had disappeared for a while during dinner) to suffer from stomachaches that lasted for the rest of the night.

"He's probably run after the boy, wanting to save him again," Morrigan said in an almost lamentable tone. "We had best go downstairs lest he hurts someone or himself. Do you not agree that Alistair is trying too hard?"

The Warden glanced at the beautiful witch and raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?" he asked.

Morrigan would have scowled if it weren't for the fact that it was Logan Amell looking at her curiously with those electric blue eyes of his. She cursed him inwardly for feeling this way as she pretended to be unaffected by his look. "The boy—Connor. He is possessed, is he not? What are the chances that he could actually be freed from such a monstrosity?"

Logan pursed his lips and looked away from Morrigan. In truth, Logan didn't see much hope in freeing Connor from the grasp of this demon, but it was only because of Alistair's determined pursuit of a better solution that forced him, too, to look for an alternative that didn't result in the Guerrin heir's death. It wasn't his first choice, but Logan felt the need to honor his friend's notion first before his own.

"There's always a chance," Logan said carefully, "But if it has to end badly…"

Morrigan rolled her eyes. "Always the better man," she scoffed, visibly unimpressed, "It will be the death of you one day, Logan, I can promise you that."

Logan shook his head and sighed. "The Arl, Lady Isolde and even Connor are perhaps the closest thing Alistair has to family. You should know that."

"'Tis a moot point," Morrigan said simply, before a scream—Leliana's—suddenly interrupted them.

"Hey! I'll take care of Bann Teagan," Garrett said, "You two head downstairs and see what happened—"

Logan didn't need any more telling to know that something was going on down there. He dashed out of Connor's room with Morrigan following closely behind him and descended the stairs—it was in times like these that he greatly detested castles and their grandeur (he honestly thought that such structures could actually afford to be a little shorter or smaller)—as the noise suddenly died down the closer they got to the first floor.

They reached the first landing and emerged in the main hall. Logan looked at his companions confusedly as they were huddled around something, all of them silent and still. He walked up to the former lay sister and tapped her lightly on the shoulder with a questioning look, but it disappeared the moment he saw tears in her eyes.

"Leli—"

"He's dead," Leliana whispered, shaking her head. "We could have saved him but…"

A sob pierced through the silence, and Logan immediately knew it to be Isolde's. He gently pushed through Sten and the twins and saw Isolde, on the ground, cradling her dead son in her arms. A pang of guilt struck him—the feeling was akin to being splashed by a bucket of ice cold water. Logan noticed a large wound in Connor's chest, and immediately looked up and around. He didn't have to take a long time before his eyes fell upon the bloodied blade that Alistair held. His eyes met the former templar's and saw an overwhelming amount of regret in Alistair's hazel brown eyes.

But there was more than just regret—Logan didn't have to look into Alistair's eyes to know what it was. Self-loathing. He instinctively made to approach his friend, but Alistair pushed his way out of the suffocating circle and stormed out the castle. Within a blink of an eye, Bethany tore after him.

"Maker keep him," Logan heard Sirius whisper sadly, "He was such a good boy."

Logan let out a slow breath as he knelt down and offered Isolde a comforting squeeze on the shoulder. "Arlessa," he started, but then stopped as the Orlesian woman looked up at him with reddened, puffy eyes. He bit his lip and shook his head. "Remember him as he was, my lady."

Isolde let out a soft sob again as she watched Sten lift up Connor in his arms. "A funeral," Sten grunted, "It must be done."

The Qunari seemed to be teetering on the edge of saying more, but he decided against it as he fell silent again. Logan knew what it was—Connor deserved a funeral because he died as a consequence of his mother's selfishness. Everything about this should be causing Logan to feel anger towards Isolde, but he couldn't bring himself to. After all, she had just lost her only son. He didn't want to think about how Arl Eamon would react once he found out.

"We'll make the arrangements," Sirius offered, "Where is Bann Teagan?"

Logan glanced at the dark-haired boy and indicated the steps leading up to Connor's room. "He's upstairs. Slightly injured, but all right, I think. Garrett's up there with him."

Sirius nodded and looked to his twin sister. They exchanged identical looks before swiftly making their way up. Logan turned back and watched Leliana lead Isolde to a chair. Morrigan remained by his side and clicked her tongue.

"It did not need to end so painfully, had they not been so bent on their ways," Morrigan said softly. Her words were supposed to sound harsh and cruel, but Logan couldn't deny the sympathy in her tone. He looked at her and smiled bitterly.

"Sometimes I think the very same thing."

"Alistair!"

"Leave me alone."

Bethany would have laughed if the situation had not turned out so badly—Alistair was crouching in the middle of the courtyard and was hiding his face in his hands, refusing to look up at her. She tried to pry his hands away from his face and was determined to have a proper, sobering conversation with him, but he refused to budge.

"Come on," she persisted, tugging at his gloved hands.

Alistair sighed. "Just… leave me alone, Bethany," Alistair mumbled, shaking his head.

"Are you going to stay like this forever?"

"Maybe, yeah!" came the stubborn reply, "Maybe I'll turn to stone or something and… and die."

Bethany rolled her eyes. "Alistair, it wasn't your fault," she said gently, "Everyone knows that. Even Lady Isolde. Connor wanted someone to do it because he knew there was no other way. If we had left him with the Bann and Lady Isolde while we made for the Circle Tower, things would have turned out even worse!"

Alistair remained silent, but he relented a little and lowered his hands. "I was so sure we could have done this without killing anyone," he muttered, glancing up at the auburn sky wistfully, "He was the Arl's son… the Arl's only son. And I let him die… I killed him. So much for repaying the Arl, huh? Ending an undead infestation in his village and then taking away his heir… he's never going to forgive me."

"You had no choice. You saw what happened in there," Bethany said seriously, "If you didn't do it, then someone else would have. Sten would have… or Leliana… or even Sirius or Alexandra. You know that."

Alistair groaned as the scene played in his mind again like a recurring nightmare.

Connor dashed into the main hall where everyone else had been waiting anxiously for them. Alistair was right behind him as the boy pushed through the startled figures and the former templar was just about to grab Connor by the collar when six shades materialized out of nowhere and surrounded them.

"Connor!" Isolde screamed, and made to chase after her son, but was knocked unconscious by a shade that had immediately set its sights on her. Bethany immediately turned it to ice swiftly and moved over to Isolde's unconscious form, as the rest moved into defensive positions with shades circling them.

"Get the boy!" Sten yelled, moving to fend off the shades. Sirius and Alistair bolted after Connor, who scowled and finally decided to stop running and turned to face them. "You want the boy? Come and get him!" snarled the demon within.

Sirius lunged at Connor and held onto the boy's body and attempted to knock him out, but a blast of spirit energy threw him backwards and sent him crashing into Alistair. Disoriented, Alistair tried to focus on Connor as darkness flooded out of nowhere from all corners. At first, he thought it was because he was losing consciousness, but he soon realized that the "darkness" that was enveloping him were, in fact, shades.

Sirius struggled to get back on his feet and looked around dazedly, before making his way towards Connor again. Shades were circling him and everyone else, and all he could see was the delighted smirk of a young boy that sent rage coursing through his veins—

A scream pierced through the chaos and Alistair turned around to see Leliana being engulfed by three or more shades—Alistair couldn't tell, because it just looked like a huge darkness was swallowing her—and, within a split second, witnessed Alexandra throwing herself at the creatures and cutting through them with her daggers. He was momentarily fazed as the shades flooded the hall, but an evil chuckle brought him back to what he knew he had to do.

With his sword and shield, Alistair pushed through the stubborn shades and cleaved a path towards Connor, who had by now trapped Sirius and Sten in crushing prisons that seemed to be suffocating them at an alarming speed. He cast a quick glance behind him, where Alexandra and Leliana were backed into a corner and attempting to fend off the hungry shades, and Bethany was trying her best to repel the monstrous beings with a variety of spells, and turned back to Connor.

The demon was so focused on killing Sirius and Sten that he didn't notice the man dropping his shield and running towards him. Suddenly, he could feel no more power. Sirius and Sten were abruptly released from their prisons and fell to the ground, coughing and gasping for air, as the shades around them died away, their shrieks barely a whisper. Connor looked to the man responsible for the blade through his chest and found himself looking up at a grief-stricken Alistair.

There was a rage in the boy's eyes. "You…"

Alistair said nothing as he removed the blade from Connor's chest. Suddenly, the boy's eyes softened and his lips stretched into what looked like a smile. Alistair felt his heart wrench as he realized what—or in this case, who—he was looking at. "C-Connor?"

The boy looked grateful, even as the pain consumed him. "Thank you," he whispered, "I… take care of… him. Find a cure…"

"I could have saved you," Alistair muttered, "I'm so—"

Connor had already stopped breathing before Alistair could finish his sentence.

"Are you alright?" Bethany's voice dissolved the memory, and Alistair found himself looking directly at her.

He cleared his throat and realized what he was doing and who he was with, instantly feeling the heat rush to his face. "I'm fine," he said nervously, "I… I just… I guess couldn't deal with it at first. But I remembered him thanking me and he—he told me to take care of Arl Eamon. I can't be moping about to do that, right?"

Bethany smiled. "Right!" she said cheerfully, extending a hand. "Now get up and pull yourself together."

Alistair grasped her hand with a little too much enthusiasm, but thankfully Bethany didn't notice. She pulled him up and—to his surprise and joy—did not let go of his hand as she walked back with him into the castle.