A/N: So I've (finally) posted the edited versions of chapters 1-7. Some of them have just a few things fixed, like typos and what-not, but others, like chapter 6, have been extensively rewritten. So, if you read those chapters originally before this date (6/23/13) you may want to go back and read them again, especially chapter 6.

Also, both my betas are on hiatus indefinitely because of real life (we've all been there), so I am currently without a beta. So I apologize in advance for the roughness of this chapter, and all the rest that follow. And if anyone would like to be my new beta for this story, please PM me, as I could probably definitely use the help!

Now back to your regularly scheduled chapter.

Act One

Chapter Seventeen

Demons of Sloth

Paden and Anders rounded up Carver and Varric, and the four of them headed into Darktown. Darktown was huge, and if you didn't know exactly where to find someone down there, chances were you'd never just run into them. So they asked around. Several people had seen the Templar in question, most were none too happy that he had been snooping around in their part of the world. They followed rabbit trail after rabbit trail and never seemed to get anywhere.

"I say we just go where we know we'll find a Templar," Varric said after an hour of searching.

"Looking for him in the Gallows will be my last resort, Varric," Paden said. "Doing it this way is risky enough."

"If you're that afraid of getting caught, then maybe I should go question him in the Gallows," Varric offered.

Paden gave him a smile. "That's sweet of you, Varric. Let's just look around here a little longer before giving up." She approached a man who was sitting beside a campfire smoking a pipe. "Excuse me, have you seen a Templar around here today?" she asked for umpteenth time.

The man arched one eyebrow at her. "Funny you should ask that," he said. "One was just here not ten minutes ago."

Paden looked at her companions in surprise. "Really? Which way did he go?"

The man pointed with his pipe stem to a steep stairway that descended even deeper into Darktown. "He was asking people 'bout some woman that's gone missing or some such. Didn't pay much attention to him myself. But he went down there if you want follow."

"Thank you," Paden said, and they took the stairs to the lower level.

"This Templar has really got some nerve coming all the way down here by himself," Anders commented. "There are a lot of apostates hiding in Darktown. He'd be fair pickings for some of the more vengeful ones."

"No to mention Carta, mercenaries and general thieves," Varric added. "They love going after people who look like they don't belong."

"Templars are pretty tough, though," Paden said. "He could probably stand up for himself."

They came to the top of a short stairwell, and from down below they could hear men's voices raised in anger. As they descended the steps they witnessed a group of armed men harassing a gray-haired Templar who had his sword drawn. The man was obviously out of his element as the thugs surrounded him.

"You were saying?" Varric quipped.

"This will end badly for someone," Paden said.

Carver drew his sword and Varric took Bianca off his shoulder. They charged down the stairs to defend the lone Templar.

Anders looked at Paden. "I can't believe I'm doing this," he said, and sighed. "No obvious magic. Staffs as weapons only."

Paden nodded and they ran down the stairs after the others. Carver had drawn most of the thugs away from the Templar, who had retreated back against a wall. But Carver was vastly out numbered and would soon be overwhelmed. Varric took up a guarding position in front of the Templar, shooting anyone who came too close.

Without giving themselves away, Paden and Anders were forced to leave their staffs out of the equation, at least where magic was concerned, since a staff would just telegraph their use of magic. But a mage didn't need a staff do magic. Though, Paden had never used her staff as a blunt force weapon before either, nor had she done any sort of combat without her staff, or without casting ranged spells. The little bit of study she had done on covert spells was unpracticed. So she followed Anders' lead.

He ran into the battle, using his staff more like a sword, which was easy for him since his staff had quite a nice blade on the end of it. But he used both ends, one to slice and stab and the other to strike and pummel. Every chance he got he'd contact the enemy with his bare hands, sending electricity directly into them without creating a noticeable arc. Paden was further impressed by his combat skills. It didn't seem like something a healer would be proficient in. Did he learn all that as a Warden?

Paden fumbled her way through the battle, using her staff only as a way to keep the thugs away from her. She electrocuted a couple, stunning them enough for Carver to finish off. But in the end she felt like she didn't really do much compared with the others. Avoiding the Templars altogether was much easier.

Once the last thug fell under Carver's sword, Paden went over to the Templar, who came forward to meet her.

"I thank you, serah, for coming along when you did," he said. "My name is Emeric."

"Just the person I was looking for," Paden said with a smile. "I heard you're looking for Ninette."

"Ghyslain de Carrac's wife, yes, have you seen her?"

Paden shook her head. "No, I'm looking for her as well. I was hoping you could give me some leads."

Emeric sighed. "Her disappearance interested me. I tried looking into it. However, the investigation has been a waste of time."

Great, so they weren't the only ones having that problem? That didn't bode well. "Did you learn nothing?" Paden asked.

"Most people just say she left her husband," Emeric said, obviously annoyed. "This all started when Mheren, one of our Circle mages, disappeared. I found it odd. She was a bit older and hardly adventurous. Then I heard about Ninette and two other missing women."

Varric chuckled. "I had a friend who disappeared once. Turned out he was under my bed, drunk." He glanced at the others and they just stared at him. He shrugged. "What?"

Paden sighed and looked back at Emeric, who ignored the dwarf. "I think the disappearances are connected, and I suspect foul play is involved."

"Mages routinely flee the Circle," Paden said. "Perhaps Mheren just wanted freedom."

"She had always been loyal," Emeric said. "She received lilies from an unknown suitor, and some of us thought she may have gone to meet him. Perhaps her disappearance is linked."

"Doesn't the Circle use phylacteries to keep track of its mages?" Paden asked.

Emeric nodded. "We followed her phylactery to a foundry, but found nothing. I had heard of sympathizers smuggling mages through Darktown, so came here hoping to pick up the trail. But there was no trace of Mheren. And as you've seen, asking the locals hasn't made me very popular."

"Haven't you mentioned this to the City Guard?" Paden asked.

"They said there's no proof the disappearance are connected," Emeric said. "They think that the women just left home. That it happens all the time."

"People don't just disappear," Paden said. "Perhaps they were murdered, or kidnapped."

"We found no bodies, no ransom notes. Those women just vanished."

"Seems like your investigation is a little farther along than mine," Paden said.

"You may take over if you wish," Emeric said. "I am through with it."

Paden frowned. "You're just giving up? Is it really that hopeless?"

"This battle showed that I am no longer the warrior I used to be," Emeric explained. "I know when to walk away." He handed Paden a small diary. "Here, take my findings. Perhaps you can make more use of them. I'm going back to the Gallows. I'm too old for this."

"Thank you," Paden said.

Emeric left, and Paden flipped through the diary. Anders came to look over her shoulder. "He keeps sloppy records," he commented after a moment.

"Well, talking to him has convinced me of one thing at least," Paden said. "Ninette is more likely missing against her will. Did you hear what Emeric said about Mheren? She received lilies from a suitor just before she went missing." She looked at Carver. "Didn't Ghyslain say the same thing about Ninette?"

"Now that you mention it, yes, he did," Carver said. "I didn't think anything of it at the time. But he said that the elf, Jethann, sent them. So does that mean that Jethann is the killer?"

"Assuming they've been killed," Paden said.

"Unfortunately that's usually what happens to women when they go missing," Anders said.

"Well, in any case, I think we should check out that foundry that Emeric mentioned. Maybe we can find some clues there."

"So, onward and upward then?" Varric asked.

"Might as well," Paden said. "We still have several hours before we have to meet Athenril's boy at the docks."

They left Darktown and headed to the foundry and factory district of Lowtown, a dirty, smelly place, where the streets and the buildings seemed to always be coated with a thin layer of black grime. Ash from the factory smoke stacks drifted lazily from the sky like snow, clinging to their hair and tickling Paden's nose. She used the information in Emeric's diary to find the right building, and they went inside.

The main room of the foundry was large, with a high catwalk around three sides of it and stairs going up. As soon as they walked into the room they noticed someone up on the catwalk, but couldn't make out what he was doing or what he looked like from that distance. He saw them and hurriedly fled into an upper room.

Paden began running after him, but suddenly a horrifying creature rose up out of the floor in front of her. Larger than a human, gray and black and brown all muddled together, with a sinewy, rotted-corps look to its flesh. Long arms with hands nearly dragging on the ground, and a nearly featureless face with eyes like white lights shining out from under a leather cowl.

Paden had never seen anything like it and she froze in place, not sure what to do. And just as the one rose up in front of her, two more appeared on either side.

"Shades!" Anders shouted. "Demons with strong magic. Kill them quickly!" Putting action to words he began throwing a barrage of spells at the Shade that was closest to Paden.

It took Paden only a moment to comprehend Anders' words, and then she had her staff in her hands. She could feel the power the shades were drawing, crackling across her skin like the static charge in a wool sweater. Coupled with the rumbling, moaning sound they made, the air around them felt heavy and oppressive.

Paden used a freezing spell on one of the shades, which seemed to work surprisingly well. It slowed the shade's movement to a halt, and Carver took advantage of that, rushing over with his sword and hacking at the demon with all his strength. But it overcame the effects of the spell after only a few moments, and Carver had to move his feet to keep from being knocked over by those huge swinging arms. Finally, though, he landed the killing blow and the shade burst into a black vapor cloud that dissipated quickly.

Paden glanced around and noticed that for each shade they dispatched, another one seemed to take its place. She used the freezing spell on another shade and left it for Carver to finish off, while sending a lightening bolt through yet another one.

Suddenly Paden began to feel overwhelmingly exhausted, like she had been fighting for hours without rest. Her movements slowed considerably, and she started to wonder if she could even go on.

"Hawke!" Varric's voice called. "Are you hurt?"

Paden suddenly realized she was standing still, not even fighting anymore.

"Hawke! Look out!"

Three shades were closing in on her from different directions, but Paden felt too weak to care. And then Anders was beside her. He sent a powerful mind blast toward the shades, but it affected Paden a little as well. She staggered backward slightly, flailing her arms to keep her balance. It did her no good. She toppled backward and landed hard on her rear. Then she just sat there, unable to do much else, her mind so foggy she was barely aware of the three men coming to her rescue.

Anders used a freezing spell on one of the shades, and lightening on another, while Varric pumped bolt after bolt from Bianca into the third. Carver's sword shattered the frozen shade, and then they were all gone.

The men stood panting for a moment, making sure no more would suddenly materialize in front of them. And then they were all gathered around Paden. Anders knelt beside her, resting his hands on her shoulders.

"Are you injured?" he asked.

Paden shook her head. "I don't think so," she managed. "I just…I fell down, I guess."

Varric let out a breath he must have been holding for a while. "Don't scare me like that again, Hawke. 'He died of fright' is not how I want my story to end."

Paden couldn't help but smile at that. "I think I'll be fine," she said. "Help me up?"

Anders pulled Paden to her feet, but kept a steadying hand on her shoulder. "All right?"

Paden nodded. "Yes, let's…lets… uh, what were we doing here again?"

"Ninette," Varric said. "And the Templar Emeric." He exchanged worried glances with the others.

"Right," Paden said, finally remembering. But things like their mission and fighting and walking, and even talking just seemed too tiring, too difficult to even bother with.

The men watched for a moment longer, but then Carver finally sheathed his sword. "Let's go," he said. "Whoever that was up there is probably long gone by now." He started walking toward the stairs that led to the top of the catwalk. The others followed him.

Paden felt like her boot soles were made with lead as she plodded along behind the others. She tried lifting her foot onto the first step, but she didn't lift it high enough and her toe caught the edge of it. She toppled forward, and, unable to regain her balance, fell flat on her face on the stairs.

"Hawke!" Varric exclaimed. "Are you all right?"

Anders hurried back down the stairs and helped her into a sitting position. He looked into her face, his brow etched with concern. "What are you feeling?" he asked her.

Paden forced the fog from her mind enough to answer him. "I'm so…tired," she said. "More tired than I've ever felt before. I can't… make my body cooperate with me."

"It's as I suspected," Anders said. "She's under the influence of a weakness spell, cast by one of the shades."

"But all the shades are dead," Carver said. "How is it still affecting her?"

Anders shook his head. "A weakness spell does not break upon the death of its caster. And the victim will remain in its hold indefinitely, unless it is broken by a third party or killed."

"No, don't kill me!" Paden exclaimed, her mind too muddled to realize she was being silly.

Anders chuckled lightly. "Don't worry, we're not going to kill you. I believe I can break the spell. But you need to lie down." He put an arm around her and supported her down the steps, then helped her lie down on the floor. Then he knelt beside her and rested one hand on her head and the other lightly on her belly. He closed his eyes and concentrated.

Paden felt a sudden rush of power through her body, like a jolt of electricity. She gasped and her body spasmed. The sensation that followed was one that she had never felt before, and would not easily forget. It was as if hundreds of tiny threads were running through all the pores and veins in her body, and Anders grasped the ends of each one and began to pull them all together. They slowly snaked through her body, tingling and tickling the whole way. She groaned in discomfort and tried to role over to get away from the strange feeling, but Anders' hands pressed her to the floor.

She looked up at his face. His eyes were closed tightly in concentration, his jaw clenched. A white light emanated from his hands, and after a moment he lifted his hands, drawing them slowly together above Paden's body, until it looked like he was holding a white ball of energy in both hands. Then, with a concentrated effort, he squeezed the ball, and it got smaller and smaller and smaller until it was the size of a plum. Then with one hand he shot the glowing ball into the wall at his right. It disappeared, and Anders' body sagged from exertion.

As soon as the light disappeared, Paden felt the heavy shroud of exhaustion lift and her head cleared. She sat up, putting a hand to her head. "Oh, that was horrific," she said.

"So it worked then?" Varric asked. "The spell is broken?"

Anders nodded. "Yes, it's gone."

"What were demons doing here?" Paden demanded. "I've never seen an actual demon before."

"I have, unfortunately," Anders said. "Many, in fact. You've never gone through a harrowing like mages in the Circle are forced to. So you've never had that experience fighting demons. Those were lesser shades, also known as sloth demons. They're the most common rank of demon in the fade, and easily summoned by a blood mage. I bet you anything that man we saw up there summoned them to distract us while he got away."

"A blood mage?" Paden said. "That's just great. Let's pray to the Maker this is in no way connected to the case of the missing women."

"That would be ideal, wouldn't it?" Varric said. "I have a feeling, though, that we're not going to be that lucky."

"I have a feeling you're right," Paden said with a sigh. She got to her feet, amazed at how much better she felt. She looked at Anders as he stood up. "Are you all right?" she asked.

He nodded. "I'll be fine in a minute. Lets take a look at the rooms upstairs."

They went cautiously up the stairs to discover three small rooms containing crates and various supplies. One seemed to be set up like an office that doubled as a bedroom. Paden wandered around for a moment, looking for clues. On the floor by the desk she noticed a bulging leather bag like a satchel. She reached down and pulled back the flap to look inside, and then jumped back, startled. The bag contained rotting human remains, including a hand and a skull.

"Oh, Maker!" Paden exclaimed, clutching her chest with one hand and covering her mouth with the other.

"What's the matter?"' Carver asked.

Paden pointed to the sack. "It's hopefully not Ninette."

Carver came over and looked into the bag, drawing his hand back slightly when he saw the contents. Varric and Anders came over to have a look as well.

"The ring on that hand looks Orlesian," Anders remarked.

Paden crouched down to take a closer look at the fancy piece of jewelry. She sighed softly. "It does," she agreed. "Then…if this hand belonged to Ninette—Andraste guide her—Ghyslain should have the ring back at least."

She scrunched her nose as she reached into the sack and gingerly lifted the hand enough to pull the ring off the finger. It tore some of the rotted skin and Paden had to hold her breath to keep from hurling up her breakfast. Then she stood up quickly and stepped back away from area, taking a few deep breaths. "Oh, Maker…"

"Here," Anders said, holding out a handkerchief. Paden placed the ring on it and Anders wrapped it up and handed it back to her.

"Emeric will want to see these remains," Paden said.

Carver picked up the satchel and secured the flap closed. "We better be getting paid a lot for this," he muttered.

"Lets go," Paden said. "I feel like I've done my good deed for the day, but we still have to meet Athenril's boy at the docks tonight."

"And whose fault is that?" Carver said. "You're the one who took that job."

Paden sent him a glare. "Come on. First stop, the Gallows to find Emeric. I don't want carry this sack around any longer than necessary."

"So we're going to go to the Gallows anyway?" Carver said.

"But this time we know who we're looking for. We know his name and what he looks like. It will be a lot easier to find him without drawing too much attention."

"I still think you're crazy," Carver said.