Chapter 30 – Deep Below
"Stay alert. There's likely more than darkspawn down here," Alyx called as they entered the heavy darkness of the Deep Roads.
"What else could possibly live in this disgusting place other than darkspawn?" Velanna asked in surprise.
"Deepstalkers, giant poisonous spiders…if it's large and scary and wants to eat you it's probably down here," Sigrun replied cheerfully with a flippant shrug of the shoulders.
"That's…disturbing," Nate offered from somewhere behind her in the darkness.
"Glad to be of service!" Sigrun chirped.
Alyx shook her head in amusement. It seemed that their new companion had a peculiarly perky attitude towards what most would see as impending death. Of course as a member of the Legion of Dead she was figuratively already dead, but it was a surprising quality nonetheless.
"Ugh! What is that smell?" Anders complained.
"Corruption," Alyx replied evenly. "You'd best get used to it now. It'll only get worse the deeper we go." Though difficult to explain to someone who never experienced it, the singular stench of the darkspawn taint was an odor one would not soon forget. Alyx had recognized it the moment they'd entered the roads.
"Oh, that's just wonderful," Anders drawled as he held his staff up and whispered a spell that emitted a pulsing light from his staff that lit the path in front of them. Though dim, it was enough for Alyx to see that the entire area had been utterly consumed by the encroaching taint. It covered everything in a dark, crawling sludge that made it nearly impossible to see the majestic, albeit deteriorated stonework beneath. It was so thick in some places that she could hear it squishing underneath her boot heels, making her cringe in disgust.
"I think the wall just slimed me," Velanna moaned, sounding as if she were about to be sick. Alyx could hardly blame her.
This was perhaps the last place she wanted to be. To her these roads held nothing but bad memories and the promise of a frightening and bloody future. Glancing over at Oghren she realized that he would be just as affected as she. On their last trip into the Deep Roads he'd been forced to slay his first wife, Branka. No matter how poorly she'd treated Oghren, and despite the fact that she'd been completely mad in the end, Alyx knew it had still torn him to pieces to kill her…though he'd probably rather go without booze for a month than to admit to it. Her plan to keep him sober suddenly seemed to be more of a cruelty with that in mind.
"Keep going straight. It's not much further," Sigrun said softly behind her as they reached a crossroads leading in three different directions.
Alyx nodded and continued ahead. As Commander and the most senior warden amongst them she'd automatically taken the lead. She would sense the darkspawn before the rest of them and could warn them of numbers and, in some cases, varieties ahead of time. She could sense them already though thankfully, at a distance. Of course with so many wardens present that was bound to change and quickly. It was only a matter of time.
"So why were the darkspawn after you?" Anders asked Sigrun, breaking the silence that had fallen over the group.
"I'm sure they intended to turn me into a broodmother. They do that with females you know, and darkspawn are nothing if not predictable," Sigrun replied.
"Were predictable," Nate interjected. "We really can't assume that now that they've become intelligent."
"All the same, no females are to be captured, period." Alyx replied, leaving the word alive unsaid but implied. By the heavy silence that followed she knew they understood.
"Do you really believe you're dead?" Anders continued eventually, his curiosity apparently getting the better of him. Alyx held back a snort as she silently waited to hear Sigrun's reaction.
"In a matter of speaking," Sigrun replied. "When we join the Legion we leave our old life behind, symbolically dying in the process."
"Is there some great ceremony that takes place when you join?"
"It's called a funeral."
"Right, but is it boring and somber like a regular funeral? I mean, you're not burying anyone…"
"This is true," Sigrun replied after a thoughtful pause. "Dwarven funerals involve a great deal of ale and singing. Then there is an orgy."
"What? You're kidding!" Anders crowed in shock.
"Of course I'm kidding," Sigrun replied. Alyx could almost hear the dwarf rolling her eyes in response.
"Well then, what's the ceremony actually like?" Anders pressed.
Sigrun sighed.
"It begins with chanting and toasts. Then we bid our families farewell. Then, wailing and tears."
"That does sound like a funeral. How depressing," Anders replied, sounding a bit disappointed by this revelation.
"We're not the Legion of Jaunty Pub Songs," Sigrun snapped in irritation.
"But think how much easier recruitment would be if you were!" Anders quipped in return.
"Is he always like this?" Sigrun asked to no one in particular.
"Yes," a chorus of voices said in response.
"He-ey!" Anders protested.
"If you learned to keep that mouth of yours shut every once and a while, human, you would have no reason to be offended," Velanna muttered irritably.
"Perhaps you should take your own advice, elf," Anders snapped back.
"Enough," Alyx commanded, her patience finally giving out. "We have more important concerns."
The wardens behind her immediately silenced and soon Alyx found herself wishing they would begin talking again. The strangest part about tainted ground, something she'd nearly forgotten over the years, was how unnaturally quiet it was. Creepy wasn't nearly a strong enough word to describe it.
The path before them suddenly opened onto a vast natural cavern, an underground river snaking through the remains of dwarven architecture. Natural light trickled in from a gap in the ceiling high above them, though it was not enough to make much of a dent in the surrounding darkness.
Kal'Hirol, Alyx thought as she surveyed the scene before her.
It had always been a private source of amusement and wonder to her that the dwarves had a propensity for building everything at such a grand scale when they were so physically small themselves. During the blight she'd seen statues ten times the size of anything she'd ever seen on the surface. It was mind-boggling really. She couldn't help but be impressed with the craftsmanship still evident in the stonework despite the damage the darkspawn had wreaked over the years; and that so much of the ancient, unused architecture still stood hundreds of years later was a testament to their unsurpassed skills.
"These are mainly outbuildings; private residences, shops and the like. The fortress itself is still up the path a ways," Sigrun said as she stepped up next to her to look out over the ruin.
"What do you know of Kal'Hirol?" Alyx asked as she turned to look at the woman.
"Not much. Just what the others from the Legion told me. It used to be important, a center of learning for the smith caste. When the fortress was lost, a lot of what the smith's learned was lost with it. They've never built anything quite like Kal'Hirol since," Sigrun replied, her gaze growing distant as she talked. Perhaps she was imagining what it had been like before the darkspawn, or perhaps she was thinking about her fallen friends; Alyx couldn't tell for sure.
"Are you ready to move on?" she asked Sigrun.
The other woman nodded and directed them down a steep dirt path into the heart of the cavern. They had barely reached the bottom of the path before Alyx heard Sigurn's sharp intake of breath.
"Jukka," Sigrun whispered, her face draining of all color. She took off at a sprint before anyone could stop her.
"Sigrun, wait!" Alyx called after her, but the dwarf ignored her. To Alyx's surprise and relief she dropped to her knees a few yards away, crouching over what appeared to be a pile of rubble near the river bank. "Come on," Alyx commanded to the others, sighing in both irritation and concern as she followed after Sigrun.
When they drew closer Alyx could see that the woman wasn't crouched over rubble at all but another dwarf in heavy armor, mortally wounded by the looks of it.
"It's Jukka. He's hurt. Bad," Sigrun explained, her eyes never leaving the crumpled figure in front of her.
"S-Sigrun?" the dwarf stuttered as he tried to focus his eyes on Sigrun.
"Yes, it's me. Be still and try not to talk," she replied softly as she helped him into a sitting position.
"There must be something we can do for him," Alyx said, looking back at Anders over her shoulder in question. The mage shook his head in the negative, his hazel eyes silently apologizing. That look said all she needed to know: it was too late for this poor man.
"No," Jukka ground out. "I feel my death upon me, and it is a sweet release."
"No!" I have bandages! I can help—"
"You must listen!" Jukka growled, grabbing Sigrun weakly by her chest plate as he tried to catch his breath. He coughed harshly, a line of blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. "The…the broodmothers…they are breeding. I saw an…an army. You…you must stop them. But…but beware the children," he wheezed.
"What…what children? Whose children?" Sigrun asked, confusion and panic spreading across her face.
"For…give…me…" Jukka gasped painfully. His eyes rolled up into his head, the deep, rattling gasps for air finally slowing then stopping altogether.
Sigrun reached out a shaking hand to brush Jukka's face with her fingers. When there was no response she closed her eyes and bowed her head in defeat.
"Ancestors look kindly on you, brother," she murmured sadly, her shoulders shaking once in pain before she straightened and looked back at the rest of them in determination. "We have to finish what the Legion started. Those broodmothers need to be destroyed."
"Agreed," Alyx replied, placing a comforting hand on Sigrun's shoulder. "And you will have your vengeance my friend. This I promise you."
Sigrun nodded and clasped Alyx's arm in a sign of respect, a silent understanding passing between the two women as they stared into each other's eyes.
Alyx stiffened as a sudden, terrifying screech sounded from across the river, echoing the pulse of dark energy that shot through her system like an arrow. It could only mean one thing: darkspawn.
"Uh, Commander…I think we're about to have some company," Nate called as he drew his bow and nocked an arrow in preparation. The others drew their weapons as well, each of them circling in place as the hue and cry went up in all directions. They were surrounded.
"I think it's safe to say that the darkspawn know we're here," Alyx replied lightly as she dropped into a defensive position.
"Nice of them to send out a welcoming party, isn't it?" Anders quipped, flashing Alyx a devious smile as he twirled his staff in anticipation.
"My thoughts precisely," she replied, returning his smile.
"Are all topsiders this crazy?" Sigrun asked as she looked between them.
"Just us wardens," Alyx replied.
They fought wave after wave of darkspawn as they slowly progressed through the ruins to the entrance of Kal'Hirol. It felt like they'd been fighting for hours, though how long it had actually been, Alyx couldn't know for sure. It was difficult to keep up with the passage of time in the eternal darkness of the Deep Roads.
"Maker, but they never give up, do they?" Anders breathed as he collapsed against a sturdy stone wall. He was pale and sweating from the excursion of battle. It took only a glance for Alyx to realize he was dangerously close to using up the last of his mana stores.
They were all exhausted, in fact, and in desperate need of reprieve. She closed her eyes and reached out with her senses, trying to pin-point the closest cluster of darkspawn.
"When one knows there's a threat they all do. That is the nature of the group-mind. We'll likely be swarmed the moment we enter the main fortress, but we should be safe enough for now," she said as she pulled a small vial from out of her pack and held it out to Anders. He eyed the unmistakable blue liquid inside and shook his head.
"I'm fine," he said, refusing the vial.
"You won't be if we're attacked again anytime soon. Don't make me command you to drink it," she replied. He eyed it warily but eventually took it out of her hands, downing the lyrium with a grateful smile. She sighed, realizing she would have to talk to Velanna about sharing some of the healing responsibilities with him. Neither mage would like it, but Anders was taking too much upon himself.
Alyx turned to walk away but Anders surprised her by grabbing her arm. She turned back to arch an eyebrow at him in question. He silently gestured with a subtle move of his head and a meaningful glance over her shoulder. She looked around to see Sigrun sitting by herself and at a distance from everyone else. She mouthed a "thank you" to Anders and walked over to talk with their new companion.
"You never told me what happened," Alyx said softly as she sat next to Sigrun on a cracked stone bench facing the entrance to Kal'Hirol. She had to admit that it was an impressive sight. A large courtyard stood before them, lined with massive pillars inlaid with the sort of runes and scrollwork that had become a familiar sight over the course of the blight. At the far end of the courtyard was a long flight of stairs that led to a massive set of iron doors just visible from their position.
Sigrun was staring forlornly up at those doors, almost as if she expected something to happen if she stared at them long enough. She sighed at Alyx's words.
"The Legion got this far with no trouble. We got careless, and complacent, and stormed the main entrance…up those stairs. It was a disaster. The darkspawn were waiting. They turned the thaig's old defenses against us.
"Traps?" Alyx guessed.
"And more," Sigrun replied with a nod. "Ancient dwarven ingenuity, used by the very monsters it was intended to kill. We need to learn from the Legion's mistake. Avoid the main door," she said forcefully.
"Then what do you suggest?"
Sigrun pursed her lips in thought.
"Most of these old dwarven fortresses had hidden side entrances. I bet this one does too. We just need to find it."
Which would be easier said than done, Alyx thought. Hidden doors. Traps. She could only guess as to what else they would find once inside the ancient fortress. She supposed there was only one way to find out.
Muse Tunes: "A Journey in the Dark" by Howard Shore (LotR:Fellowship of the Ring OST); "The Passage of the Marshes" by Howard Shore (LotR:The Two Towers OST); "Elektra's Second Life" by Christophe Beck (Elektra OST).