I finally updated this story, and boy did it take me forever! I've been so crazy busy, I barely have the time to sit down and write a few paragraphs. My next update will be A Dangerous Thing, or at least I hope so, I've sort of reached a writer's block for that story. Anyhow, enjoy this new chapter, reviews are great, I like to know what you readers think. And I'll try to update as soon as I can!
April 4th, 2012: Beta-ed by my new beta ObsessionistXO
RISE OF THE DARKSPAWN
It wasn't a difficult task to track down Alistair. The young Warden found him sitting near the entrance of the Grey Warden camp, propped on a severed stump and happily nibbling on something that greatly resembled cheese. Vesper padded in his direction as Dog ran earnestly for the young man, her heart pounding as she took notice to the sinking of the sun beyond the highest ruin in Ostagar; in an hour there was to be a war. Her eyes fell to the well-used path set before her as her footing came to a halt. Images of battle flickered through her scattering thoughts, the butchering and bloodbath of the innocent staining the memories she was achingly trying to suppress. Lady Cousland could still smell, could still taste the blood of her slaughtered family; and that sensation of rage began to boil again. She was just beginning to see red when a worried whimper was heard at her waist.
Her lost gaze dribbled down to Dog, who tilted his head knowingly as she still hadn't blinked. "Your Mabari ate all my cheese-" the flutter of her eyelashes released Vesper from whatever spell her reminiscing had caused, and she looked up alerted by the abrupt place Alistair had taken in front of her. He was motioning with a copper plate, sprinkled with creamy yellow crumbs, "He just trotted up, pretending to be nice- and gobbled it all up!" The young Warden was still fathoming what the dashing sandy blond, coppery haired Warden was trying to say; although the exact shade of his cropped locks was now beginning to bother her more so.
"I'm sorry, what?" she finally muttered, "What did Dog do?" Alistair was now watching her through narrowed eyes, as if his entire complain was now a lost cause, but Vesper soon connected the dots; or in this case crumbs, which were just as creamy and yellow in Dog's whiskers. "He ate your cheese didn't he?" the young Cousland asked, although it was strictly clear her faithful war hound had. She dropped to her knees beside Dog, who was now purposely averting his eyes from his master. Vesper used a part of her tunic to wipe the crumbs clean, "Bad Dog, you know better than to eat what is not offered to you." A deliberate series of whines came from the hound's dark muzzle and she tilted her head to see that Alistair was still not too pleased. "What kind did he eat?"
That seemed to pike the young knight's interest, who pondered only momentarily before answering, "Cheddar, my favorite." Vesper noticed as Dog's face grew the guiltier and she answered with a small pat on the hound's head before returning to her feet.
"When I can get to a market, I'll buy you more cheese," she told Alistair in sincerity as a surprised look of opportunity crossed his manly features.
"In that case, I want the expensive stinky kind," he quickly jested with that quirky smile she began to notice he had.
"If that is what you wish," Vesper answered, trying to prevent herself from bubbling into laughter from his use of 'stinky'.
Alistair was equally amused by his own comment, "I'm going to hold you to that, you know that right?" He took one final look at his empty plate before discussing other things, "Besides sending your dog to eat my delicious cheese, I'm sure Duncan has some sort of message for me about tonight's battle?"
The young Warden was unsure how to approach the topic, especially since she would be telling the eager Alistair that he wouldn't be bracing his sword or shield for this battle. She wondered if it would disappoint him or he would be very passive about the entire thing, for it was much safer than standing at the frontline. Vesper herself would have appreciated to have been included in the actual battle, but she didn't know her fellow Warden long enough to understand what sort of reaction she might get from him. Therefore, Vesper meekly shrugged and answered blandly, "He asked me to find you so that we can meet him by the fire together." Alistair's silly grin fell from his face and his golden eyes removed all eagerness, as if he knew entering battle wasn't on their agenda.
"Oh...," his voice dragged in obvious disappointment,"I'll just go put this down then." Vesper watched as he sadly sauntered back into the Warden's camp; she didn't like dashing someone's hopes, the young Cousland had treaded those waters many times before. At her feet, Dog was still whining with guilt as they waited for their third companion. So she sat on her knees again beside the guilt-ridden Mabari hound and scratched his back until Dog bounced back onto his feet as Alistair came sulking back. "Alright, let's go," he was smiling and at least a bit cheery when he spoke, but Vesper could still see that he wasn't too thrilled about meeting with Duncan.
Together they passed through the ruins of Ostagar, in the sort of awkward silence that comes between two strangers, but as Duncan's campfire came into sight, Vesper couldn't help but feel relieved. The senior Warden was pacing back and fourth, the warm glow of the large fire catching his face just the slightest with every turn. She could see the age on his face, the withering of battles' tole on him and a sort of untold wisdom that had lead many Wardens before her into battle. Duncan paused in his step once he had heard them enter the ring of pillars surrounding the campfire, and didn't hesitate to get straight to the point, "You heard the plan." He directed himself at Vesper, and she felt Alistair glance at her from the corner of his eyes, "You and Alistair will go to the Tower of Ishal and ensure the beacon is lit."
"What?" It was clear the junior Grey Warden had been expecting a more thrilling assignment from Duncan and Vesper felt a slight ping of pain for next telling him herself earlier. "I won't be in the battle?" The young Cousland couldn't help but stare when she heard the familiar chime in his voice as he asked the senior Warden for a confirmation on his question; a sense of rejection and purposely being protected for no reason. Haven felt that way many times in her past, Vesper too felt frustrated with King Cailan's plan. As important as the beacon was, both the King and Teryn Loghain had made out the task to be minimal, which was why she initially understood when Duncan agreed to send her in place of the Teryn's own men. However, Alistair was the junior Grey Warden and had far more experience as a Warden than she; it didn't make sense to send such an experienced Warden with her when there were other recently initiated recruits back in camp.
Duncan soon answered the dismayed Warden, "This is by the King's personal request, Alistair." That seemed to strike a chord with Alistair, who had opened his mouth to argue, but quickly decided against saying anything. "If the beacon is not lit, Teryn Loghain's men won't know when to charge," the senior Warden explained, however, Vesper still felt there was no excuse for a trained Warden not to join his comrades in battle.
Alistair scoffed, "So he needs two Grey Wardens standing up there holding the torch. Just in case, right?" The Warden's sarcasm dripped with venom and had caught Duncan off-guard, but Vesper completely agreed.
"I agree with Alistair," she voiced loudly before the senior Warden could speak, "We should be in the battle, if not both of us, then at least Alistair!" The young Cousland hadn't felt so passionate towards something in a long time, and was determined to make her opinion heard. "I understand that I am a new Warden, therefore it is probably best I go to the tower..." she continued in a more settled tone, "But Alistair is the junior Grey Warden, he deserves to be in battle with the rest of the Wardens-"
"That is not your choice," Duncan interrupted sternly, but still managing to remain calmly, "If King Cailan wishes Grey Wardens to ensure the beacon is lit, then Grey Wardens will be there." Vesper's protest for her fellow Warden ended with the reminder of the King, he truly had insisted on her and Alistair to be the ones to light the beacon, so there was no longer room for argument. "We must do whatever it takes to destroy the darkspawn..." the senior Warden clarified, "Exciting or no."
Vesper nodded defeated by her superior and turned to Alistair, who too was bobbing his head just the same. He turned to her as well, with a smile that almost thanked her for the effort she had made; but the young Warden wasn't sure, none the less, it was comforting to know he wasn't upset with her. "I get it, I get it..." the junior Warden sighed, now smirking. "Just so you know," he went on in that boyish charm of his, "If the King ever asks me to put on a dress and dance the Remigold, I'm drawing the line. Darkspawn or no." Alistair's banter came as a surprise and Vesper tried to hide her amused grin behind her hand, it was amazing how quickly his mood changed.
"I think I'd like to see that," she replied, not expecting any sort of response.
"For you, maybe," came a witty response out of Alistair, who was happy to know his joke was not ignored by both of companions, "But it has to be a pretty dress." A very conspicuous sigh was heard from Duncan as Vesper was now vividly imagining Alistair in an Orlesian Spring Dress of pink fabric and bows, dancing feverishly with a childish smirk planted about his face as he did the Remigold. It was a hysterical sight that had her softly chuckling into the palms of her hands.
When Alistair's way of enlightening the upsetting news of their task had passed, Duncan went on to remind them where the legendary Tower of Ishal was located across the bridge and gorge she had followed the Warden across; and that Alistair would recognize the signal once they reached the tower's top floor where the beacon was to be lit. Once the signal was lit however, Vesper and Alistair were expected to stay and guard the tower while Teyrn Loghain's men made their charge. Even though the impending possibility of danger was addressed, Alistair still continued to comment on the lack of participating in the battle. This only made Duncan smile and appreciate the Warden's eagerness, to which he ensured there would be plenty more battles for the both of them. As the battle grew upon them, they were reminded of the brief one hour window they had to reach the beacon and cast the fire. Vesper nodded to the senior Warden, acknowledging her duties, but Alistair was still a little reluctant. "Duncan..." he spoke, "may the Maker watch over you."
"May he watch over us all." And with his final words, Duncan bowed to the young Cousland, an almost painful reminder of who she was before becoming a Warden; and then to his protégé Alistair before parting to join King Cailan in the battlefield below.
The wind whispered silently through the emptying camp, the knights splashed a spare bucket of water on their fires and gathered their already bloodied arms, and Vesper watched as the King's men marched to their calling, in a hauntingly familiar fashion. Vesper could still recall her brother, Fergus, promising to return with the King's autograph from where he sat nobly on one of the family's most finest stallions. He smiled and waved, blowing a kiss to his beautiful wife, before trotting beside his marching men. She stepped into the dark shadow of a crooked pillar, watching with fascination as men in the hundreds followed each other across the camp; King's men, mages, Ash Warriors, all united for a single cause. Vesper's interest was pried away when she felt a heavy hand against her plated shoulder, "Duncan said we had an hour, we better head for the tower." The young Warden looked into his face, the disappointment still lingering. She gently nodded as her eyes fell back to the dirt at her feet.
"Uh yes- I just need to get my father's sword," she brushed past him with Dog at her heels, oblivious to how he followed closely behind as she walked into the now abandoned Warden's camp. The merriment she had heard the night prior was all but vanquished, with nothing left but the few logs drawn about a dead campfire; she remembered Alistair's bland stew, how all the other Wardens treated her like any other noble. Keeping mind of the time, Vesper stepped into the last empty tent where her belongings were scattered and dirty from fleeing Highever. Propped against a small chest where she had left it was the family sword, which she strapped quickly to her back before secondly reaching for the shield of Highever; long and rectangular, with the family crest carved into the fine wood. The young Warden heard as Alistair ducked into her tent, admiring the shield.
"I want to thank you for what you said earlier," he said in all seriousness, reaching out to thumb the corner of her father's shield, worn from use. Vesper wanted to smile comfortingly, but she couldn't bring herself to do so. She knew what it was like to be on the sidelines, never there at the frontline, it was a daily routine for the youngest Cousland. "You shouldn't have said it probably-" the normal obvious remarks that Alistair usually made was back, "but I'm glad you did."
The young Cousland lightly grinned at him, "I know how it feels to be denied the chance to prove yourself." Being the youngest and a Cousland daughter, Vesper was never allowed to train with her father's men or join them in sword games. Instead, she was expected to attend her mother's salons and the salons of her mother's friends; to be a proper lady suitable for marriage. Now that that part of her life was gone, she felt guilty for not at least trying to socialize with the other girls her age and act like the noble woman she was. Shaking her thoughts, Vesper attached her shield to her back as well and turned to Alistair, "Let's go."
Vesper made way to lead her companions when a bolt of lightning crossed the span of the now night sky and had the two Wardens looking up as the first few drops of the storm plopped onto their faces. A roll of thunder echoed into the near canyon, announcing the storm as the rain began to fall heavier across Ostagar. She turned to Alistair in worry, storms during battle was both a sign of swarming victory or a bloody defeat; and this the junior Warden realized too, for he simply returned her gaze with a gloomy plainness. The young Cousland turned back towards the bridge when a horrifying guffaw of inhuman roars bounced into the camp from the ravine, and her once worried expression had petrified in realized fear. "Darkspawn..." came Alistair's voice close to her side, "the battle with start in mere moments, we better-" Vesper felt his hand touch her arm and pull her attention back towards him, "When I fought my first darkspawn, I wasn't prepared for how monstrous it was." She wasn't sure if what he was saying was exactly what she needed to hear, but she listened, even as a crowd of Mabari hounds barking on the battlefield could be heard. "I can't say I'm looking forward to encountering another one, but..." his fingers gently squeezed her arm, "I promise to fight at your side and keep you safe."
She now felt foolish for fearing what she was now made to fight. The novice Warden clutched Alistair's arm int return, giving her most convincing smile of confidence, "Thank you Alistair." He smiled back at her and she too squeezed his arm, "I too promise to fight at your side, and to protect you." With the Wardens being all she had now, Vesper vowed to herself to make good on her oath to Alistair; she wouldn't allow this bloody Blight to take anything more away from her. As an understanding passed between the Warden's, Vesper's arm fell to her side and she turned to lead again, this time lightly jogging towards the bridge.
As soon as the trio had met the bridge, Vesper stopped in her tracks as a flaming boulder hurtled up and over the bridge. A small gathering of archers on the bridge ducked and fell as another boulder crashed into the bridge, causing the entire structure to shake violently. The young Warden glanced down at the reddening battlefield, stumbling as another hot rock was catapulted into the bridge again. Alistair bumped into her and a number of new archers brushed past them, covered in blood and panting as they went to take their stations across the threshold. "Quick, we have to cross the bridge to get to the Tower of Ishal!" Alistair had to holler over the rumble of the battle below and another soaring boulder just to be heard. She nodded at him and after the boulder had cleared the bridge, Vesper immediately began to sprint across the length of the bridge.
The Wardens had nearly made it to the halfway point of the bridge, where a handful of men were stationed around a large ballista prepped to be launched. However the lot of them ducked before the ballista could be set and Vesper was flung onto her hands and knees as a boulder crated into the siding of the ruin. She heard the men as they hollered in pain and she turned to see them withering on the ground in flames, falling still as their flesh continued to burn. Alistair arrived to spring her back onto her feet, and the duo with Dog closely behind made it safely to the other side as another rock skimmed across the stone surface of the bridge. It wasn't long until they ran into another soldier, followed by a mage, by the first ruin slope towards the tower. "You...you're Grey Wardens aren't you?" the soldier desperately asked, breathing heavily, "The tower...it's been taken!"
"What are you talking about, man? Taken how?" Alistair promptly demanded of the solider.
"The darkspawn came up through the lower chambers!" he hollered through the rain, just beginning to catch his breath as he looked back in horror at the Tower of Ishal peaking over the canopy of trees. "They're everywhere!" he added in panic, "Most of my men are dead!" With the ran mudding the ground and the faint smell of blood through the muggy air, news of swarming darkspawn in the tower they seeked was rather alarming. Suddenly an uneventful task given to them by the King's request had turned into something a bit more challenging.
Alistair, who had been already carrying his shield prepped for confrontation reached for his sword, "Then we have to get to the beacon and light it ourselves!" The boost of confidence in the Warden's voice had Vesper draw her own weapon from the baldric strapped to her back and embrace her shield, ready to storm the tower. She gave Alistair a curt nod before he took the lead in the rush up the slick slope, where a litter of darkspawn were waiting at the base of the tower.
Any humanity that remained with the darkspawn was not apparent as Vesper witnessed a darkspawn tear through the flesh of a dead soldier, blood staining its razor sharp teeth and smeared across the lipless mouth. These humanoid creatures were the very images of monsters from the bedtime tales her father use to tell her, grotesque and utterly terrifying, but Vesper couldn't let this fear control her. She was a Warden now, and that bloodlust of battle was mastering her senses. As the feasting darkspawn looked up, its red beady eyes falling upon her, it shrieked at her and made to attack. Vesper rushed towards the monster, as the others swarmed in, digging the tip of her sword into the thick hide of the first darkspawn, then in a clockwise motion she turned her body and sliced her blade free of the darkspawn only to plunge it up the throat of another. Blood splattered her face and the rancid smell of taint and decay emitted from the dying creature. Vesper kicked the impaled darkspawn from her sword and spun around again, this time smashing her shield into the fleshy face of another demon.
A darkspawn screamed as another of his comrades fell and charged Vesper, but she acted first, throwing her shield at the now near creature and listening as the sharp edge of her father's guard slash at the darkspawn. She moved to watch her comrades, Dog had stormed one and was now mauling it; Alistair pounded one back with his shield and went on to stomp on the darkspawn's head repeatively; and the mage that had stuck with them was blasting back the weaker ones. Just as it appeared their numbers were dying down, she bent over to reach for her shield when they came barreling around the corner. In moments she had her fingers curled around the hilt of the sword of a dead darkspawn, remembering what little she had been taught of wielding dual weapons. First she side-stepped the first darkspawn to rush her, allowing Alistair to hack the creature as he came up behind her. Then as another moved towards her, the young Warden used one sword to block his attack and the other to stab him deeply in the belly.
With their time frame shrinking, Vesper disposed of the darkspawn blade by throwing it into the face of the nearest enemy before swiping her shield back from the ground. The group hacked through more troops of darkspawn as they grew closer to the tower steps, and the more she killed, the less fear the young Cousland felt towards the monsters. Which was a very good thing. For as soon as they reached the stop step and Alistair had tanked through the doors, there were far more darkspawn to be disposed of and still more floors to climb before they would reach the beacon. Scanning the floor, Vesper braced herself again with her shield before rushing to slice through these monsters. However, something told her this would only be the beginning.