The moment they received news that Amaranthine was under attack, the Wardens immediately sprang into action. She understood that it was extremely important for them to get there as quickly as possible, so after brief meeting with everyone in the keep's main chamber, she left for the city with Keenan, Brendan, Anders, Nathaniel, and Sigrun along with Garevel and two of his knights. Keenan and Nathaniel were the most experienced riders in the group, so Sigrun and Eriana rode with them, much to Anders' protests. Originally, she had planned to leave all the Southern Wardens behind; after all, they had only arrived to the Vigil the day before. But Brendan had protested that he was fine, so in the end, he came along. She had wanted to bring Oghren and Justice with her, but Oghren couldn't ride a horse, thanks to his short, stubby legs, and Justice couldn't remember whether Kristoff had any experience or not. In the end, she left the defense of the keep to them, and rode with her small party toward the city. They were well on their way before Eriana realized that she had forgotten to talk to Soris before she left. She knew he would likely be upset by this, but there was little she could do about it until they returned.

The trip to Amaranthine took them much longer than usual because they had to keep stopping to kill off the groups of darkpsawn that stood in their way. It seemed like every mile or so, there was another group that they were forced to kill, and these weren't easy little groups either. At times there were as many twenty or thirty creatures. As a result, it was well past midday before Eriana and the Wardens stood at the gates of the city of Amaranthine, but only after fighting thery way through another massive group of darkspawn that was milling around outside the city. Taking a deep breath, Eriana stared up at her city, the taint pulsating through her veins as she she tried to assess the gravity of the situation. It was like she was once again standing before the gates of Denerim, about to engage the whole of the darkspawn horde. Every muscle in her body was clinched, and she felt as if she was wound as tight as a spring about to be released. Deep in the recesses of her mind, she could hear a faint humming as the darkspawn within the city began to sense the Warden presence and move to intercept. "Maker's Balls," Keenan gasped beside her, "can you get a count as how many are in there?"

"Too many to count," Brendan muttered from the other side. "What's the plan of attack, Commander?"

Eriana was about to answer with Guard Captain Aidan came running up to them. "Warden Commander," he said, holding his keens as he gasped for breath. "I'm so sorry, Commander. They were on us so fast, and before I realized what was happening, we were completely overrun. It seemed like they were appearing from nowhere in the middle of the city. There was nothing we could do to stop them. They were just everywhere."

"Where are your men?" Eriana asked.

"Most of them are still in the city, dead, I would assume. I assembled what few I could and made for the gates; we helped as many survivors as we could on the way out but...I'm sorry, I've failed you Commander, I'm afraid we lost the city."

Eriana glanced up at him, "Lost, what do you mean lost?"

"There's no saving it; there's little that even you can do now. We tried to keep them out, but they had us completely surrounded before we knew it. There was nothing that we could do. Those things have been spreading pestilence unchecked all morning. Commander, I'm sorry, but Amaranthine is lost."

"No," Eriana said, gritting her teeth in anger. "The city still stands; there are people within those walls who we can yet save."

"People who are undoubtedly tainted by those things. It is hopeless; they're all gone." Aidan was about to say more when a massive hurlock began strolling casually up the path toward the city, its weapon securely fastened to its back in a clear show of nonaggression. Nathaniel obviously wasn't taking any chances; the instant he noticed the creature approaching, he shouted out in warning and quickly drew his bow. "Peace," it said in a gravelly voice, holding up his hands defensively, "do not be killing. The architect wishes that I deliver a message to the Grey Wardens."

"You have a message for us? Well, spit it out then, darkspawn," Eriana growled through clinched teeth, her brain humming with the taint as he drew closer.

"The Mother's army marches on Vigil's Keep; she attacks now." The darkspawn said, moving closer. Eriana felt the blood drain from her face. She swayed on her feet for a moment before Anders caught her, and suddenly she found herself separated from the talking creature by a glowing magical shield. The barrier didn't seem to faze the darkspawn. "The architect sent me to warn you; you must save the keep then finish the Mother in her lair."

"This is a trick, Eriana, we can't trust them," Keenan muttered from beside her.

"Why did the Architect send you?" she said, looking at the creature through Anders' magical shield.

"He wishes to earn the Grey Wardens' trust. He does not wish for the Mother to succeed."

"If we leave now," Garevel said, stepping up beside her, "we may be able to make it back to Vigil's Keep in time to save it."

"And what about the darkspawn here?" Anders spit angrily. "Are we just supposed to hope they take care of themselves?"

"The army here will come to Vigil's Keep," the creature said. "It isn't the city the Mother wants. It's the keep; she wants the keep utterly destroyed."

Garevel stepped up in front of Eriana, "This darkspawn has a point," he said, he disgust evident in his voice. "We cannot leave with another army heart on our heels. The Constable said that the city was lost. I say we destroy it, burn it to the ground and all the darkspawn within it."

"Garevel, I can't believe what you're suggesting," Eriana said. "I am not abandoning everyone in this city."

"The city is already lost, Commander. We can't lose the keep as well."

Eriana shook her head, "While those buildings still stand, it is not lost. There are people, survivors still inside."

"Tainted by the darkspawn," Garevel pointed out.

"Some of them maybe, but Denerim was under siege for three days before we arrived. Three days! And we still found survivors, people who had walled themselves up and had stayed away from the taint." She turned and looked back at the small party she had brought with her. "There are fifteen Wardens back at the keep along with most of the guard. Our walls are thick and our defenses are strong; the six of us will make little difference there, but we can make a world of difference here. The mother was not expecting our forces to be this strong; we have an advantage both here and at back at the Keep. As long as I am here, I will not turn over defenseless civilians to the hands of those creatures, not while I still draw breath. Are you with me?"

"Of course, I'm with you," Sigrun said with a giant grin on her face. "That's what Wardens do, right, we defend people from the darkspawn."

Everyone around her nodded, and Eriana gave a sigh of relief. "Good, take a few minutes to get ready, we're in for a long, hard fight. Keenan, Brendan, talk to the guards and see if you can figure out where the biggest groups are located. We'll start our attack there." As everyone started to prepare for battle, Nathaniel took her by the arm and led her aside, "Eriana, are you sure about this? I mean, I trust Oghren and the others too, but…Soris is there. Should anything happen, I wouldn't want you…"

"I know, Nathaniel, I know," Eriana said, trying hard not to think about her cousin. "But your sister is here, and thousands of sisters, brothers, cousins, children are here, too. Soris has a full Grey Warden force between him and the darkspawn. Besides, he's had training in combat; when push comes to shove, he can take care of himself. Besides, I knew this was a possibility when I agreed to let him stay. If I went against my better judgment and killed these people just to ensure his safety, Nate, I could never forgive myself." She sighed and put a hand on his chest. "Now, let's go; we've got a city to save."

Turning around she addressed her Wardens. "Anders, you and Nathaniel need to hang back and attack from a distance, but be sure to save some of your energy in case you need to heal us, Anders. We can't afford to lose anyone in here, so I'm counting on you." Anders nodded in agreement. "Keenan, I want you in Sigrun fighting together; Sig, stay on his shield side and watch each other's backs. Brendan, you and I will do the same. Play this conservative and don't do anything stupid, like get yourselves killed."

-0-

Night was falling when an exhausted Eriana finally pulled her daggers from the chest of the last hurlock. All around here lay the mangled bodies of dead darkspawn and humans alike. It had been a brutal day, but the taint had finally stopped humming inside her. Sheathing his sword, Brendan stepped up beside her. "Do you sense anymore?" he asked, stepping up beside her.

Eriana shook her head. "No, not close by at least. I think we've got all of them in the city. Thank the Maker it was confined to the market district. It looks as though the gates to the other parts of the city were sealed before the darkspawn could get to them."

"It was the elves," one of the guards said as the bloody and tired group began to assemble around her. "They saw the darkspawn coming, and managed to close off the other districts, keeping those things here."

Eriana gave a small, self-satisified smile; that action alone had probably saved the entire city, "That's good." She took a deep breath and looked around at the guards and Wardens who had all joined her, looking to her for guidance and leadership. "We need to find a secure place where we can start rounding up survivors."

"How about the Chantry?" Brendan suggested. Behind her, Anders gave a quiet moan.

"The Chantry would be perfect. Okay, spread out and search for anyone who is still alive. Have them collect food and water and a few changes of clothes and head to the Chantry. If they want to stay in their homes, advise them to secure the doors and windows. There's another wave coming."

"When?"

"I'm not sure, not tonight; they're still a good ways off as far as I can tell. Aidan, do you think you could get word into the other districts? Instruct them to keep the gates locked until they get word from the city guard or Wardens. Meet back here in two hours, understood? I'll try to get a handle on just what we can expect in the morning."

Everyone nodded and moved to spread out through the city. Eriana watched them leave before climbing the steps to the Chantry. Closing her eyes, she leaned back against the low stone wall that ran in front of the Chantry and tried to stretch her Warden senses to the limit. Feeling out with the taint, she tried to locate the armies moving toward them. Pulling on the very limits of her strength, mental and physical, Eriana concentrated on the darkspawn, trying to tap into the group mind that governed them. After a what seemed like hours, she began to feel the taint pull at her. A large group was moving toward them; if they kept the current rate, they would likely arrive just before morning. The group was huge, about the size of the force they had fought that day, but there was an odd feeling about them. It made her uncomfortable to be connected to them. She tried to pull back, to distance herself from the approaching horde, but for some reason, she couldn't break the connection. She felt inexplicably drawn to them. In the recesses of her mind, she could hear a deep, seductive voice calling out to her, enticing her to join them. A sharp pain began radiating through her head as a dull buzz began to roar in her ears.

A gentle hand on her shoulder shocked her back to reality. Opening her eyes abruptly, Eriana had only a moment to register Nathaniel's face before a wave of nausea poured over her and she lost the contents of her stomach. Luckily, it had been a long time since she had eaten anything, so it was mostly dry heaving, but it was several minutes before she could sit upright without Nathaniel's assistance.

"Ana," Nathaniel said, kneeling tentatively beside her, "What's wrong? Do I need to find Anders?"

Eriana shook her head and, with his help, struggled to her feet. "No, I just over did it. I was trying to sense the darkspawn to try and figure out what we were up against, and…I don't know, I think I got caught somehow. It was like they were drawing me to them, and I couldn't break the mental connection between us. It was strange." She rubbed her forehead with the back of her hand and finally looked up. "Oh, Delilah, you're safe. That's such a relief to me and I'm sure to Nathaniel."

The human woman threw her arms around Eriana, crying for a moment before stepping back, a hand held protectively over her growing stomach. "I don't know how to thank you, Commander. I was all alone when those things showed up, and with Albert gone…I just was so afraid that you wouldn't come."

"I'm glad you're safe. Why don't you head into the Chantry and find some place to rest; we'll meet you in there." Delilah hugged the elf one more time before heading into the building. Eriana glanced up at a still-concerned-looking Nathaniel. "I guess you told her about the argument at the gates?" Nathaniel nodded, still giving her that critical eye. "I'm fine, Nathanial, really; it was just a bit overwhelming. So, where is everyone else?"

"Brendan is arranging watches with the guard; Sigrun is checking the Chantry for secret entrances and escape routes should the worst happen; and Anders is tending to injuries."

"Good, listen, don't say anything to Anders about all that; he'll just worry and use up the last of his strength trying to diagnose a problem that isn't there. Beside, those people in there need him right now more than I do," she said as they walked into the Chantry, the guards barring the door behind them. The Chantry was filled wall to wall with those taking refuge behind the solid walls of the religious sanctuary. Eriana shook her head. "All these people would be dead if I had burned the city," she muttered, almost to herself.

"And you saved them just like you always do. It's kind of you thing, isn't it, saving people," Nathaniel said.

"I just wish I could have been faster. We should have had people stationed here already."

Nathaniel put a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You did all that you could, Eriana."

Eriana nodded, "I know; it just feels like it's never enough." She sighed sadly, "But what's done is done; now all we can focus on is what we need to do to stop this once and for all. If we can withstand this next wave, then we can march on the Mother. We just need to get some rest, though, and I have no idea how that will happen in here."

"Commander, if I may," a soft voice said from behind them. Turning around, the two Wardens were met with the kind face of the Revered Mother. "Please take my room for the night. You and your Wardens need your strength for the trials you will be facing. Besides, my place tonight is with these people; they need my comfort now."

"That is a very generous offer, Your Grace; are you sure?" Eriana said. The Revered Mother smiled and nodded before turning to a group of crying children huddled together. Eriana waved over the Wardens and explained the Revered Mother's offer. She could see the looks of relief on all of their faces. "Well, I guess we should try to get some sleep; it may be a long time before we…"

"Keenan, is that you?" Every Warden head turned toward the nervous sounding voice. There stood a woman none of them expected to ever see again.

"Nida," Keenan said, his voice and face suddenly hard. "What are you doing here?"

Nida glanced nervously around the group before turning her gaze back to her husband. "Oh, Keenan, I was so worried about you. When the darkspawn started attacking, and I saw what they could do…Oh, I was so wrong, Keenan; I had no idea what you Wardens really did. You are amazing; you are all amazing. I was so wrong to behave the way that I did. Could you ever forgive me?"

Keenan's eyes narrowed, "What happened to your friend."

She lowered her eyes. "I sent him away months ago, Keenan. I couldn't stand to look at him after what I did to you; I was just too ashamed to come and apologize. I wanted to, oh, how I wanted to, but I was afraid that after all that I had done that you would never forgive me."

"So now what; do you expect to show back up here, say you're sorry, and that all will be forgiven? You abandoned me Nida! You left me when I needed you most. Do you know that the thought of coming back to you was the only thing that kept me alive when I was trapped down there. All I could think about was the fact that I might die and leave you alone in this unfamiliar city, and do you know what? I felt guilty! Guilty! Guilty that I actions would have hurt you. Then I come back to discover you're already with someone else, that you were with him before I left. Can you imagine how that made me feel?" he hissed at her and turned to storm away, but she caught his arm and fell to her knees in front of him, tears streaming down her face.

"I'm so sorry, Keenan. I know that there's nothing I can do to make things right. There's nothing that I can say that will take away the hurt that I've caused you, but if you'll take me back, if you'll have me, I swear by the Maker I will spend every waking moment of the rest of my life making it up to you. Just please don't turn your back on me now; don't send me away."

She scrambled to her feet and gently touched his cheek. "I watched you today Keenan; I watched as you moved through the city cutting those beasts down, and it finally hit me just what it is that you do. I realized just how much you do for all of us, what a noble sacrifice you made, and I realized what a fool I had been. I never should have left you, Keenan; it was selfish of me. I know a simple sorry doesn't fix it, but I was hoping that maybe there's a chance that it's not too late, that you still might love me." Nida reached down and took his hands in hers. "Just say you still love me, and I am yours, forever. I love you, Keenan, My Warden, and I was a fool to let you go."

Nida's words tore through Eriana with unexpected force. The pain on her face, the sincerity of her words, it was all too much for her. She felt something inside her beginning to break down, he carefully constructed defenses start to crumble, but she wasn't exactly sure why. As discretely and silently as possible, Eriana slipped away before Keenan could respond. She just couldn't be there, couldn't witness such genuine regret, such true love, and then she realized why. Nida was echoing the very words that Eriana had always played over in her mind when she imagined Zevran returning to her. "My Warden," "I am yours," "I was a fool," these were all things she had hoped to hear from him, so hearing them whispered with such sincerity to another, it was more than her fragile emotions could handle.

Eriana glanced back over to the crowd of Wardens just in time to see Keenan claim Nida in a passionate kiss, relief, pure joy, and love clear on both their faces. Jealousy and longing tore through her with such ferocity it was like a hole was being ripped in her chest. All of a sudden, she couldn't breathe. Sinking to the floor in a back corner of the Chantry, Eriana pulled her knees up to her chest, trying desperately to stop the pain radiating through her. She was happy for them; she really was, but at the same time, seeing that kind of genuine love was tearing her apart. Keenan had been going through the same thing that she had, but now his hurt was over. He had the woman he loved in his arms. In her mind's eye, the scene before her shifted, and she could see Zevran in Nida's place, making the same declaration before claiming her in a loving kiss. A longing that she thought she had finally managed to squelch returned with vicious tenacity, opening old wounds she had hoped were finally beginning to heal. "Now is not the time for such feelings," she tried to tell herself, but no matter how hard she tried to stop the pain, it was still there, eating at her as ferociously as they had on her first day in Amaranthine.

She sat there, alone in the shadows, trying to gain control of her feelings. She needed sleep, desperately, but she was in no condition to sleep just now. Eriana knew full-well that if she did try to go to sleep, she would just be interrupted by nightmares, nightmares that she just couldn't deal with right now. Brushing her legs off, Eriana scrambled to her feet, making her way back into the room where the Wardens were preparing for sleep. Nathaniel shot her a concerned look, but she waved him off, moving over to where Anders was already curled up on the floor, fast asleep. She was wrong before; she needed the mage, now more than ever. Settling down beside him, Eriana reached over and gently brushed the golden hair off his face. His eyes fluttered for a moment, but he didn't wake up. It was clear that he was completely exhausted, ever last pit of energy in him had been spent patching up soldiers and citizens alike. He had drained himself to the point of absolute exhaustion. Eriana smiled down at him. She wanted nothing more than to crawl into the bedroll with him, to wrap his arms around her fall asleep in his warm embrace, but she didn't have the heart to wake him. Planting a light kiss on his forehead, she got to her feet and made her way over to the bed.

"Commander," Brendan whispered, "we decided that you and Sigrun should take the bed. We'll just sleep on the floor.

Eriana smiled at Brendan, ever chivalrous, ever the gentleman. "Are you sure; it looks like there's plenty of room for someone else."

Brendan wouldn't hear of it. Eriana grabbed her pack and moved behind the changing screen to wash off some of the grime from the day's battle and change into a new set of linen under clothes. It would make putting her armor on in the morning easier. Once she was done, she came around to screen to find that most everyone else had already fallen asleep, so she climbed into the Revered Mother's bed beside the dwarf who had also already snoring quietly. Pulling the blankets tightly around her, she watched as Nathaniel, the only person still standing, moved silently around the room, extinguishing the lights, leaving only one dimly glowing before he settled into the bedroll on the ground beside the bed. Eriana closed her eyes and tried to coax herself into a peaceful sleep, but sleep was hard to come by, even in her exhaustion. In the darkness, she could hear the whispered talk between Keenan and Nida, too low for human hearing, but clear as crystal to her superior elven ears.

For nearly an hour, she lay there, exhausted, but unable to find sleep. Rolling over with a slight groan, she found herself looking down at Nathaniel who was staring up at her. "Can't sleep?" he whispered. Eriana nodded. Sighing, Nathaniel rolled over and pulled back his bedroll, patting the ground beside him. Eriana didn't need a second invitation. Crawling out of the bed, Eriana slipped down to the floor and crawled into Nathaniel's open arms, her back resting against his chest. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she savored to comfortable, familiar leather smell that filled the air around her. The rogue's breath was warm on her ear.

"I know that it was painful for you, watching the reunion between those two. I'm sure it brought back memories that you wish you could forget," Nathaniel whispered in her ear, his warm breath caressing her neck. "I know you are hurting right now, and I wish that there was something I could do to help."

"You are, Nathaniel," she whispered, snuggling closer to him and pulling his arms tightly around her. "This is what I need right now. I just need to feel…safe, that's all."

Nathaniel gave her a quick squeeze. "I've got you, Eriana, and I'm here whenever you need me, however you need me."

Eriana rested her head against his chest. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Nate. You're a good friend, a gift from the Maker himself." And with that, she finally felt herself yield to the exhaustion that had been gnawing at her for hours. She didn't care that there would be talk in the morning when the others awoke to find her in his bedroll; she would deal with that when it came up. Right now, the fade was beckoning her.

As the two rogues began to fall asleep, Nathaniel's hand slipped down over her stomach, splaying out protectively across it. Had either of them been more awake, they would have felt the tiny flutter of movement just beneath his hand, a tiny flicker of life that was there for just a moment. But they were both too exhausted to register what they had felt, so the tumbled off to sleep completely oblivious to the fragile life that was desperately trying to make itself known.

-0-

Okay, so yes, I've been dropping hints about the big revelation in this chapter for some time now, and several of you have already guessed at it, so huzzah, good for you! If you all don't mind too much, I'd prefer not to rehash all the blow by blow fighting (describing fight scenes is definitely not my forte and you have all played it before), so I probably won't go into great detail with the upcoming fight scenes.

Special thanks to those of you who have been reviewing. You have no idea how much those messages in my inbox mean to me! Thanks to Kainen-no-Kitsune, Danyal, Jen4306, CynderJen, and Eva Galana for your reviews the last few chapters and for giving me the inspiration to keep going. Let me know what you think about the new revelation!