Disclaimer: Bioware owns all, except what I most humbly imagine. While, at times, I will take verbatim from the game, I mostly use the events of the Dragon Age games, expansions and universe as a loose structure around which to construct my re-imagined tale. If you are looking for a strict canon piece, I have no desire to offend, and so I warn you upfront!
When reading this tale, I hope you can easily imagine it being told by the very best of storytellers in Varric Tethras (from DA:2). In my version of events, Varric meets "The Hero" (Elissa Cousland) in Kirkwall during the time period of DA:2. I mention this only so that readers can understand his connection along the way, and so I don't have to mention and rehash it again and again as I make my way through the tale.
A/N: Sorry for the lengthy pause between chapters! Real world and a cranky muse conspired to make this one difficult to write. Here's hoping it came out okay in the end :D
Antivan Translations:
1. Beautiful.
2. I shall follow your lead, my goddess.
Muse Music: Search and Destroy by 30 Seconds to Mars.
Thanks to my readers, followers and reviewers! And to my betas artemiskat and Snarkoleptic!
Happy Reading!
-Frayed One
Chapter Thirty-Six: No Sleep 'Til Amaranthine
When Elissa made it to the throne room a small group of the Amaranthine nobility had gathered there along with her Wardens. Armed to the teeth and outfitted in her sinister-looking new suit of armor, she cut through the crowd with her presence alone. As she settled herself on the dais, she watched as looks of fear and awe filtered across the faces in front of her. This was not the fragmented mess Elissa had devolved into following the fall of the Archdemon, this was the Warden-Commander in her element, and the change was striking.
"Commander, many of the lords have gathered. Word is out that the darkspawn have fielded armies and they wish to know how you plan to protect them," Varel muttered, leaning down to catch her ear as she sat.
"These people do realize I led the army that ended the Blight, do they not?" Elissa arched an eyebrow up at the wizened old man and shared a half smile. "I'm absolute rubbish at any of this other nonsense, but battle, strategy and slaughter? These things I'm actually quite good at."
The nobility got louder, interpreting Elissa's brief conference with her Seneschal as further refusal to address their needs. Elissa listened to them mutter and mumble and postulate before she simply couldn't ignore them anymore.
"Assemble the men, Varel. We're going to war." The muttering got louder, several people complaining that the farms and villages of the plains would be lost to the encroaching swarm. "The enemy has shown themselves. Our best chance is to strike now and strike hard. Casualties are an unfortunate part of battle."
Elissa continued to argue her logic with Lord Eddelbrek and a couple of his supporters, before being interrupted by another returning scout.
"Commander! Commander!" The woman skidded to a stop just short of the dais, struggling to catch her breath enough to speak clearly. "The army is within sight of Amaranthine!"
"Maker protect us! They're attacking the city?" Lord Eddelbrek gasped, changing the tone of the chatter passing through the crowd once again.
"A garrison of the Keep's soldiers still remain in the city. She will not fall easily." Captain Garevel assured them, offering an encouraging nod to Elissa.
"We cannot gather and deploy our full force in time to intervene in that battle…" Varel began, sharing a look of concern with Elissa as she passed her eyes over the crowd and altered her plans.
"No, we cannot. But a small band could make it in time." Elissa pushed to her feet, tightening several of the buckles that bound her new armor. "I will lead them myself."
"This is suicide!" Eddelbrek insisted, fearing that the Commander's rumored insanity might actually be true.
"If anyone can turn this tide, it is the Commander," Varel insisted, backing the frantic crowd away. "Now, who will you be taking?"
"Zevran, Oghren, Anders and Nathaniel," Elissa rattled the list off, asking no one for concession. "The others will remain here to bolster the forces being recalled to the Keep. Once the armies have gathered, proceed to the city. If we are lucky we will trap the darkspawn in between us."
The group she had named fell in at her sides as she rattled off any remaining orders, and those who had not been chosen stepped forward to say what could in all likelihood be their last goodbyes.
Jowan was the first to approach her, his eyes shifting anxiously between the ground and her face as he struggled to find the words to say whatever it was that had pushed him to seek her out.
"I-If you were to fall—"
"Nice, Jowan. Very nice," Anders interrupted, glaring unappreciatively at his fellow mage.
"It is possible, Anders. I am not immortal. Let him speak." Elissa flicked her eyes over to his, a strength behind her words that belied their calm utterance and silenced anything he may have had to offer in response.
"If you do not return, would those of us you freed from the tower be forced to return?" Jowan fiddled with the edges of his sleeves, looking distinctly uncomfortable.
"You are a Warden now, Jowan. That does not change whether I am living or dead," Elissa assured him, watching the slow intake of breath as he relaxed with her words. "The Chantry no longer holds any claim on you, or the brothers and sisters at your side. Should I fall, Alistair will support that. Regardless of how we may feel toward one another at the moment, on this point we will always agree."
"I won't let you down." Jowan held her eyes as he spoke this time, and Elissa saw the steel will that had brought him through a life with little more than torment shining there like a beacon.
"There has never been a doubt in my mind that you would." Elissa pressed a hand to his shoulder and smiled. "Fight well, Jowan. And if I do not see you again, live your life freely and without regret."
Jowan nodded at her one last time before he moved away to join the group who was staying behind at the Keep.
As he departed, Elissa caught Velanna's eyes and motioned her over. "I will not order you to remain, Velanna, but I think that our forces would benefit from your talents."
"And should I stay, what am I to do once this is over?" the elf asked, brow furrowed in frustration as she considered her options. "There has been no sign of my sister, and I see no reason she would be brought forward as part of an army."
"I gave you my word that we would search for your sister. I do not give that lightly," Elissa insisted, leveling a neutral gaze at the woman in front of her. "Once this business with the invading army is settled, we will have to go in search of any remaining clusters of darkspawn else they will surely organize and attack again. It would be a perfect opportunity to search for your sister."
"Agreed."
It was as close to civil as things were ever likely to be between them. Elissa dismissed her with a wave, turning her attention to Sigrun who had left Nathaniel with a lengthy hug and a comment she could only imagine the content of to have left him so red in the face.
"Fighting a horde of darkspawn with almost certain death waiting? I thought that was the Legion's job." Sigrun chuckled, smiling as she stopped at Elissa's side.
"A job the Wardens share," Elissa said, smiling back at her. "I have left instructions with Varel that you are to travel with an escort of your choice to Kardol should I fail to return. He will need to be warned of what is coming. Even if the 'spawn beneath Orzammar have not yet been affected by this change, it is only a matter of time before it progresses. The dwarves will need time to prepare, and none are better suited to launch this defense than the Legion."
"You'd set me loose in the Deep Roads with your archer?" Sigrun winked at Nathaniel, bringing a low laugh out of Elissa as he cleared his throat and colored again.
"If Nathaniel returns and you desire his company, you will find few better escorts than he. And if I fall, he will need the distraction." Elissa cleared her throat and turned to the dwarf. "You are a good friend to him, Sigrun. The kind he deserves. Please promise me you will watch over him should the worst come to pass. He should not lose himself to grief or anger on my behalf. I am not worth the effort."
"I'll do what I can." Sigrun nodded her head and offered a slight smile. "But that's not a battle I'd look forward to, so… do me a favor and just come back with him. Save us all the trouble."
Elissa nodded, unwilling to verbally commit herself to anything she had such limited ability to control. Her acknowledgement seemed to be enough to satisfy Sigrun who walked over to speak to Anders as Justice approached her.
"I know on occasion you and I have not seen eye to eye—" The Spirit began, helmet tucked under his arm so that he could look Elissa in the face for what could be the last time.
"Certainly even you know that is putting it mildly, Justice. You and I have rarely agreed on anything." Elissa chuckled, uncertain if Justice would understand her attempt at humor, as he very often did not. "It is odd, now that I think on it. I used to be very much like you, seeing the world in stark contrasts – what is good versus what is bad, what is right versus what is wrong. But time and circumstance have changed me, and I can no longer operate in a world so easily defined."
"We have discussed this before." Justice acknowledged her words with a slight nod of his head. "Between what I know of you and what I have seen of Kristoff's memories, I understand that the Wardens must do whatever is necessary to protect against the darkspawn. Though I may not agree with your methods, I agree with the impetus behind them. On this, you should have no doubt."
"If I didn't know better, spirit, I'd think you were giving me a compliment."
Justice stood silent, weighing out the words he wished to say to her.
"If ever I had my doubts of you, they were erased when you stepped up and took this task for your own." He turned and offered his hand to Elissa, who took it with a smile. "Go. Fight nobly, fight well, and if you die – die with honor and find your peace with the heroes of The Fade."
"I am sorry I could not find a way to send you back, Justice." Elissa realized as she said the words just how sincere they were.
"There is yet time." Justice released her hand and stalked over to join those who were staying behind.
Elissa took one last moment to look out over the Keep. Once a second home, then a place of nightmare, now made home again. She wondered if she would ever return.
"Alright. Those of you with me, gather your things and head to the stables." Elissa watched as her orders were followed without question and moved out the door.
Elissa pushed them as hard as she could, anxious to make the trip into Amaranthine as quickly as possible. She began to sense the darkspawn several miles outside of the city, and had Nathaniel pick a copse of trees within which they could tether and disguise their horses before traveling the remainder of the distance on foot.
She doubted there was even a small chance that such a dense collection of Wardens would not be sensed on approach, especially not with the strength of the taint in her own blood counted among them, but she was willing to gamble that they could get even a few seconds to gauge what they were up against undetected.
The ruined outer buildings just beyond Amaranthine's great gates were swarmed by darkspawn. Elissa could pick out genlocks, hurlocks and the disgusting grub like bodies of the childer among them, and though she could not see it – she could sense an alpha somewhere among the chaos. She drew her company down behind a thick growth of bushes and attempted to get a better read on what waited inside the walls.
"The main gates are closed," Anders noted, watching the few guards who had remained outside of them fighting back the darkspawn as best they could. "It's possible they have been kept out of the city at large."
"No, there are far more darkspawn than those we see here." Elissa shook her head, focusing in on the pull in her blood once again. "They may have closed the gates in an attempt to prevent more from getting inside but the city is under siege behind them."
Elissa drew out her swords, tilting her head to Zevran who seemed to vanish as he moved down the left alley. The darkspawn would never sense him coming as his blood held no traces of their own.
"We clear the outer buildings first, then approach the gates. There is an alpha in there. Zevran and I will seek him out from the shadows. You three down the drones, but be especially cautious with the Children." Elissa edged her way over to the right edge of the bushes, looking back at them over her shoulder with a wink and a half smile. "I'll meet you at the gate."
She was gone a moment later, and though Nathaniel and Anders both tried to find her, neither could track any sign of her in the chaos outside the gate. Oghren charged up the middle with his axe, hewing two drones and one of the childer grubs in half before they even had a chance to react to his presence.
Nathaniel plugged arrow after arrow into the swarm that Oghren had drawn in, keeping a wary eye out for any who might think to menace Anders who kept a constant stream of rejuvenating energy pumping into the warrior.
"Have you seen her yet?" Anders asked, watching as a group of childer grubs froze in anguish after tripping one of his glyphs, giving Nathaniel ample time to finish them off with his arrows.
"No." Nathaniel attempted to keep the irritation out of his tone as it had little to do with the mage at his side and more to do with the complete silence of anything via Elissa's conduit.
"Quit yer whinin' ladies!" Oghren bellowed, gesturing up to the right of the gate with his axe. "Elf's right there. The Commander won't be far behind."
In a small cluster of ruined houses The Assassin danced around a large heavily armored hurlock Nathaniel could only assume to be the Alpha Elissa had made reference to before vanishing to go in search of it.
The beast swiped at the elf, but Zevran was fast and easily dodged its blows, piquing its fury and ensuring that it was focused entirely on him – just as Elissa wanted him to do. No one saw her, save The Assassin who jumped back out of range as her blade popped out the front of the Alpha's chest.
Elissa materialized then, standing directly behind the creature and twisting the blade once more before pulling it loose and watching that final body collapse at her feet.
"Bellisima!" Zevran smiled, sheathing his blades and watching as Elissa cleaned her own.
"I bet you say that to all the girls." Elissa looked around once more, now certain that all she was sensing came from inside the sealed gates of the city.
Anders, Nathaniel and Oghren approached looking no worse for the wear – though she could sense Nathaniel was more than a little perturbed she had managed to stay hidden from him for so long. Elissa was about to discuss options for gaining access to the city proper when a haggard older couple rushed in from the surrounding forest.
"Warden-Commander!" The man grabbed hold of her gloved hand while his wife wailed at his side. "My family is trapped inside the city! Please, save them, I beg of you!"
Elissa searched for any words of assurance to offer them, but as her eyes passed over to the hysterical woman she recognized the signs of the taint already evident in her skin and her eyes. They may have escaped whatever horrors lay beyond the barricaded city gates, but they would not survive in the end.
"I will do what I can—" Elissa began, sharing a subtle look with Zevran that relayed what would have to be done with those showing signs of the taint before they could consider this battle won.
"There is nothing to be done, Commander."
The sound of another voice surprised Elissa, who turned to watch Constable Aidan and several of his men emerge from wherever this meager group of survivors had hidden away amongst the trees.
"It's not true!" The elderly man insisted, glaring at the soldiers. "They've barricaded anyone left inside the city walls. They want to burn it all!"
"Burn it!" Nathaniel was livid, thoughts of Delilah and her family – his family – trapped inside and suffering at the hands of these monsters.
Elissa could sense his fear and anger as it mingled with her own and reached over to calm him with a light hand on his arm. "Surely you are mistaken, Constable. We've only just arrived and my scouts' reports have the darkspawn army only hours ahead of us."
"The main force of them, yes. They only began assaulting the city at dawn. But a small swarm of these… creatures… emerged from beneath the city several nights ago. They spread a pestilence so virulent it destroyed everything they touched." The Constable cringed as the older woman started to sob even harder at the memory of what they had suffered. "Warden-Commander… I fear it might be too late. Amaranthine is lost."
"The city still stands!" Nathaniel insisted, taking another step forward to stand fully at Elissa's side. "As long as she stands, all is not lost."
"The buildings might remain, but there will be few survivors now that those creatures have run rampant for so long. The corruption i-it's…" The man trailed off, eyes grown distant and haunted as he caught sight of the same infection spreading in the couple at Elissa's side. "At least a quarter of the city succumbed within the first day."
"That loss is on your head!" Nathaniel hissed, completely consumed by his fury. "You left them to die! Ran and hid in the woods like a coward!"
Though Elissa understood his anger, she also knew that it would solve nothing. She needed his focus. She needed all their focus.
"My Warden is right to question your decision, Constable." Elissa kept her voice calm, reaching a subtle hand out to squeeze Nathaniel's arm and rein in his temper. "It is your job to see to the well-being of this city, and yet we find you hiding in the forest while Amaranthine lies under siege."
Though her voice had given an appearance of calm, Elissa's words had left no room for misinterpretation. She was displeased with the Constable's decisions, and the rumors regarding the Warden-Commander's infamous temper were known even outside of the Keep. The man shifted nervously in front of her searching for an explanation that would be acceptable to the irritable young woman, but lost focus when a haggard looking Sergeant yelled over to them from his post near the road.
"Constable! There is a lone darkspawn approaching!"
Elissa's eyes flickered away from the Constable's face and onto the road, instantly recognizing the distinct armor of the Architect's elite.
"Stand down!" She pushed through the crowd, raising her voice to ensure no one could pretend not to have heard her.
"But Warden-Commander… my archers can take him down easily before he reaches—"
"Things being done your way have resulted in a city nearly lost while you hid away in the wood. I'm here now, and we'll be doing things my way. So – again – I say stand down!" Elissa leveled a glare at the Constable that staggered him, before turning back to the lone darkspawn that now stood waiting to be acknowledged.
"Grey Lady." The odd creature sketched a vague imitation of a bow toward her before continuing with its message. "The Mother's army, it marches to the Vigil's Keep. The Architect, he sent me to warn you. You must save the Keep and then finish the Mother in her lair."
"Vigil's Keep is under attack?" Nathaniel turned his attention to the conversation, sharing a look of concern with Elissa as she thought on the truth of this message.
"The Grey Wardens… the Grey Lady is valuable to The Architect. The Mother, she knows this. She sends her army to take the Keep while you stay here distracted. When she is done, she will come for you." The creature paced anxiously, giving every impression that it was actually concerned for her well-being and the well-being of those under her command.
"If we leave now, we may be able to make it back to the Keep in time to save it," Anders suggested, hoping that there was more validity than bravado in those words.
"And what of the darkspawn here?" Nathaniel snipped, temper rising again at the thought that they would walk away having done nothing. "Do we leave them to run rampant among the helpless even longer? If we leave now, Amaranthine will truly be lost."
"These here are not your concern," the messenger insisted, turning his own pleas back to Elissa. "Soon the forces here will leave to join the others at the Vigil's Keep. The Mother, she wants it destroyed utterly!"
"This creature has a point, my Warden," Zevran noted, sauntering up to Elissa with Oghren at his side. "Should we decide to turn our attentions back to the Keep, we should not do so with even a small force running at our heels."
"If the city's lost, burn it. Those monsters barbecue just like anythin' squishy!" Oghren leveled a meaningful glare at the Messenger, watching the creature shift uncomfortably.
"You would burn the innocent? Women and children and…" Nathaniel was livid; it was all Elissa could do to hold him at bay. "My sister is in there! You would burn her?"
"I'm sorry." Elissa turned her eyes back to the messenger. "I must have faith in the fortress I have built and in the forces I left behind. I will not abandon Amaranthine without even trying."
"If we destroy this city knowing nothing of who might still live inside it, we are no better than the darkspawn," Anders offered his support, seeing that Elissa now stood divided between those who wanted to stay – and those who thought the best option was to go. "The Commander is right. We have to try."
"I do not wish to see fire ravage these streets, Doamna Mortii – but I fear that it may be our only chance," Zevran insisted, standing without flinching in the face of Nathaniel's continued anger.
"What if there is a chance, no matter how small, that we could save someone – anyone?" Elissa held his eyes steadily. She needed him with her on this. She needed them all.
"It would take a miracle—" Zevran began.
"I have come back from the dead, Zev. How much more proof do you need to see that I can work miracles?" Elissa smiled at him, watching him come around to her way of thinking.
"Seguirò il vostro esempio, la mia dea." Zevran bowed, and settled back at her side, watching as she drew in a short relieved breath.
"And you, Oghren? What if that was your family in there? What if it was Felsi and the baby?" Elissa asked, knowing she was taking a cheap shot at her friend's one true weakness, but needing him at her side.
"I would risk everythin'." Oghren sighed, meeting Nathaniel's eyes long enough to acknowledge that the fury there could easily be his own. "The Wardens, the Keep, sod – I'd even risk you. Stone! Come on. We've got a city to save."
Elissa beamed at them all. Her Wardens, together, willing to risk it all for even the chance that an innocent life might be spared. This is what she had wanted for them, and somehow in spite of all her errors and missteps, she had gotten them to this point regardless.
"No… no, Grey Lady!" The Messenger stepped forward, placing himself bodily in between Elissa and the main city gates. "If you stay here, then The Mother will get what she wants. You must go, you must—"
"Fight with us." Elissa had made this suggestion before to one of the awakened darkspawn, and it had resulted in laughter – but this time, she could see it hesitating. "Make a stand, and once we have ensured the safety of the city, we will follow you to seek out The Mother. On that, you have my word."
There was a moment of hesitation, but then the creature's spine straightened and he moved forward to stand with the rest of those following her into the city. "I will go. I will do as the Grey Lady bids."
Elissa stood a moment longer listening to the screams that filtered up from the burning city just beyond the gates. It could have just as easily been Denerim years before – and then there had been no hesitation – only resolve. The decision had been made. They would fight to save Amaranthine and her people. Vigil's Keep would have to hold.