Chapter 56: The Liar and the Gentleman
"Err...let me get this straight," Hadrian asked the drunken dwarf currently blocking his way to the main entrance of the Deep Roads. "You want to go with us because Branka broke your heart?"
"No, you nug-humper! Weren't...weren't you listening?" The dwarf belched then and all the party members looked ready to vomit their breakfast. Morrigan's lips twisted into a nasty grimace and everyone knew that the witch had been itching for an excuse to turn someone unseemly into a toad.
"If he's going," she stated, "I'm staying in the back, upwind of him at all times."
"He's not the only one who makes noises," Leliana giggled and Zevran couldn't help but give a smirk of his own at Morrigan, causing the latter to redden so much that her face was akin to a tomato.
"I do not make noises!" Morrigan huffed indignantly and her arms crossed underneath her bare bosom. Despite Hadrian having bought upgrades to everyone's weapons and armor, the witch insisted on wearing her low-cut top and leather leggings. However, she was most grateful when she received the black grimoire once possessed by her her mother and then subsequently lost to the Circle of Magi and even happier after being promised by Hadrian that her mother would be dealt after dealing with the dwarves. The witch, too familiar with being betrayed by empty promises, knew when people were lying to her but Hadrian seemed honest enough to follow through. After all, he hadn't thrown her out of camp yet and these strange signs of affection occurred more and more frequently. Love is weak, child. Only the strongest survive. Her mother's teachings hardened Morrigan to the point where the witch believed it to be true. Power is what matters most.
And here, right before her very eyes, was an occurrence that not only defied her mother's teachings but went farther beyond that. This show of friendship between everyone in the group, the unconditional love that shone brightly from the two warriors standing in front of her made the witch feel uneasy and confused. Was her mother wrong after all? After all, human nature had many nuances, from the weak-willed sycophants to savage beasts. Witnessing this rare form of love was a revelation to her, making her feel something she thought she'd never feel with anyone else. It wasn't jealousy, even though Hadrian is indeed a handsome man. No, Morrigan actually wanted to become part of the group. She wanted to be a part of the camaraderie that flowed so easily amongst the others. She wanted to be someone important to another person and right now, travelling with Hadrian, she is someone important. A valued witch of power and...and a friend.
"Apparently, she is so disgusted by the dwarf's aroma that she has become a mute!" Zevran's coarse laughter broke the witch's reverie and Morrigan tapped him on the shoulder lightly only to send out a jolt of lightning.
The elf jumped in surprise and he laughed even more. Morrigan had forgotten that the elf liked a little bit of pain.
"Hey, cut it out you two!" Hadrian's sharp bark cut through the antic like a knife and grumbles of 'hard-ass' and 'stick in the mud' rumbled throughout the warrior's friends. The words of resentment were, of course, said with smiles on their faces and Hadrian sighed heavily, knowing that perhaps this moment of joviality is needed before heading into the Deep Roads.
-o0o-
"Maker, I think I'm going to be sick," someone moaned in the darkness and retching sounds followed soon after. The smell of vomit was worse than the newcomer's belches but it didn't faze the dwarf either. He merely droned on and on about the Deep Roads and how everyone was trying to get a piece of Branka for political gain.
Hadrian hadn't wanted to leave Alistair behind but he needed a rogue and a mage in the party. However, the spot at his right side, where the dwarf currently resided, felt irrevocably empty and his weapons became even heavier than usual. His reasoning to Alistair, stupid as it sounded then and still now, was that it was better if only one Grey Warden succumbed to the dark whispers of the taint and those who carry it.
"If you don't return in a week's time, I'll come and find you," the blonde promised in a fervent manner and Alistair kissed him, on the lips, in front of everyone. While their relationship was probably no secret to their friends, he certainly felt uncomfortable being so exposed to the unknown dwarves.
"Is that a promise or a threat?" Hadrian teased back but Alistair would have none of that. The other warden took his chin in a forceful grip and almost growled in his face, the act demanding him to submit to the other man. Oh fuck...seeing sharp canines elongating a bit and the way those dark brown eyes flashed golden at him made Hadrian regret saying those words to him. He was in for it now and it gave him something to look forward to at the end of this horrific journey into the deep.
Suprisingly enough, it was Morrigan and Zevran who had joined the other warriors. The odd mage and rogue pair worried Hadrian a bit for the two had never fought alongside each other before. It had always been Wynne and Leliana or Wynne and Zevran fighting with him.
Morrigan had actually volunteered to go, so long as she stood upwind of the dwarf's farts and belches. Also, she appeared ready to want to have a good, soul-searching discussion with just Hadrian. No Alistair to watch over them like a beast wanting to rip her to shreds for just being near with Hadrian.
"Hadrian, you are lucky that I just managed to master the healing spells. I would hate it if you and this disgusting excuse of a dwarf die and leave us to fend for ourselves."
"Do not worry, dear Morrigan," Zevran chuckled and the elf twirled his daggers in his hands. "I will always protect you and your bosom from these darkspawn."
Morrigan's eyebrow twitched in annoyance at Zevran's cavalier manner of talking about her chest.
"I would worry more about protecting your balls than my own bosom. It is no wonder that Wynne avoids you at all times in the campsite."
"This armor, despite its leathery appearance," Zevran sniffed the air expectantly and sighed in pleasure, "protects me in all places."
"I'm sure," Morrigan replied dryly.
Hadrian shook his head at the way the two bantered and bickered all the way from Ortan Thaig to Cairidin's Crossing. Then the bickering stopped. Not because the two were tired of outwitting the other but due to the creepiness of the Deep Roads. All four of them, even the dwarf himself, quietened for each whisper echoed endlessly down the long marble bridge that ended at the expansive set of doors where two groups of darkspawn archers, emissaries and ogres awaited them.
Each footstep took them deeper and deeper into the fleshy tunnels, where a woman's voice could be heard singing out in the air that stank of rotting flesh and corruption of the worst kind. No one said anything about Hadrian retching a couple of times while they explored even further down. Even Oghren halted his excessive burps and farts. The red-haired dwarf knew when to be serious, although he did find splitting darkspawn heads open with his axe more fun than Hadrian.
When they finally arrived at the source of that chilling voice, all four wished they hadn't. The foursome found her standing in a corner, dressed in tattered clothes that reeked of urine and weeks' old blood The female dwarf's skin, mottled with bruises and darkspots, was pale and her milky eyes, bereft of any intelligence that once existed, stared at them with cold, calculating hunger.
What was scarier than meeting up with a female dwarf was seeing the monstrous result of a female forced to eat darkspawn flesh for weeks, months on end. Morrigan herself gagged at the horrendous sight of that giant flesh moving around, of that flattened face with rows of sharp teeth and beady black eyes. Of course, they didn't have time to fully take in the awful sight of a Broodmother as hordes of darkspawn spilled into the area, thus trapping them there.
Once it was all said and done, with Zevran finishing the Broodmother off by shoving his daggers deep into the nape of her neck, the four literally sprinted to the exit, not really wishing to stick around to see what happens to a deceased Broodmother.
"You know," Zevran panted, catching his breath once they managed to reach a safer area. "I think Alistair's one lucky bastard."
"What do you mean, Zev?" Hadrian replied and the noble gulped down a stamina draught quickly. The potion worked wonders and already he could feel his muscles itching for another battle, another exciting round of life-threatening skirmishes
"That he's not down here, with us, and that he's a male. See, Morrigan, this is your inspiration to not be left behind here," Zevran continued and the elf pouted when Morrigan withdrew her offer of a stamina draught.
"Morrigan," Hadrian's voice strained with exasperation. "He's just joking, sort of."
"Hmmph. If you think you're going to leave me behind so easily, then you're sadly mistaken." Morrigan eventually gave the elf the potion but only out of necessity. "However, I do wonder what our compatriots are up to."
"Probably to no good. Hope they camp outside of Ozammar," Hadrian said.
"Why?"
"Because I don't trust this Lord Harrowmont. He smells bitter, like a festering wound."
"And Bhelen?"
"Strong like steel and not very malleable. However, he is more forthcoming with his intentions of Orzammar's future."
"And how would you know this when you just talked to the dwarf-prince for five minutes?" Morrigan continued her line of questions. Her sudden curiosity irked Hadrian but the noble decided to humor her at least for the moment.
"Because I can smell what he is, what he knows, and what he truly wants."
"And pray tell, what does he want?"
"To win or die."
-o0o-
It had been almost two weeks since Hadrian and the others left but there was still no sign of them. Alistair's frantic pacing and frequent glances at Ozammar's entrance drove the others crazy but they too felt that something had gone wrong and they couldn't do anything about it. This revelation of their helplessness made the waiting game almost unbearable to handle and Alistair had just about enough of this.
"Alistair, please stop pacing! You're wearing the path down so much that you're going to get stuck in the hole you've just made!" Wynne sounded tired and Alistair jerked his head up to give a once-over to the healer.
The older mage had sat down on one of the bedrolls, with a book lying in her lap. It was too far away from Alistair to discern the book's contents but the warrior could tell that it involved magic of some sort. Probably an advanced version of the healing spells Wynne was always using.
When Hadrian took Morrigan of all people with him, Alistair wanted to challenge him, to practically force his lover to have Wynne in his group instead of the golden-eyed witch. Why did he take her and not Wynne? Was it to allow the witch to prove herself to the group? Or simply that Hadrian didn't trust her enough to go wandering about the dirty streets of Ozammar in search of forbidden tomes and the like.
Knowing his lover, it was probably a little bit of both but that didn't allay Alistair's worries.
"I'm quite sure the young man is alright, as well as the others," Bodahn's calm and confident voice calmed the blonde down a bit, at least enough so that the warden was able to accept a hot bowl of soup without spilling its contents.
"Something happened and I don't like it," Alistair replied and he wasn't going to drink the soup until Bodahn gave him a stern eye. Dwarves can be scary when their offers of food and gifts are refused. Thus, he relaxed and merely sipped at his dinner all the while trying not to meet Bodahn's eyes nor gaze at the unmoving doors of Ozammer.
Apparently satisfied with the warrior's actions, Bodahn smiled at Alistair before returning to the firepit that Wynne managed to create not too long ago. Everyone had camped around the warm hearth, even Sten, whose imposing stature warded off any possible strangers that might accost them. Leliana had sat beside Wynne, humming to herself while sharpening her arrows.
It appeared that no one else was worried about the delay in their friends' return, only Alistair. They, however, didn't have a wolf inside them, growling and snarling at its mate's absence. It demanded Alistair to go after his lover but the blonde just couldn't leave his friends behind. Also, it would be stupid of him to go stomping after Hadrian in the Deep Roads, alone and unprepared.
Kill the Defiled One...protect mate...
The voice was stronger this time, as was the urge to charge in there, and just when Alistair almost gave in to his bestial side, a shout of 'Hadrian!' drew his attention away from himself and to the doors opening up slowly. Four figures could be seen emerging from the darkness of the interior and the wolf howled in relief at the sight of a dark-haired man. However, relief and happiness soon gave way to worry and anger when he realized that Hadrian was in actuality being supported by Morrigan and Zevran. Even from ten feet away, the scent of the taint and blood overwhelmed him and it made Alistair want to gag from the stench.
"Hadrian! Maker's breath, he's bleeding!"
"And heavy! Will someone please assist me in this?" If it were under any other circumstances, Alistair would have found Morrigan struggling to keep her balance funny. The blonde immediately took Hadrian's arm from the witch and he unwittingly snarled at the elf who was only trying to help him carry Hadrian closer to the fire, where Wynne was draping a heavy blanket on the rocky ground.
"What happened to him?" Leliana asked of Zevran as the elven assassin all too willingly gave up his position and allowed Alistair to help Hadrian walk to the awaiting healer.
"Well, it's a long story but we finally got the dwarves to join us," Zevran replied and his hands shook a little bit, a sign that the elf was truly disturbed by whatever he had encountered in the Deep Roads. Even Morrigan seemed paler than usual and the witch grumbled underneath her breath, words like 'broodmother' and 'bastard king' coming out of her mouth in an angry tirade.
"Unfortunately, we also found out that a newly joined warden is more sensitive to the darkspawn in the Deep Roads, especially with an Archdemon leading them out of the Deep Roads."
"Stories later," Alistair growled impatiently at the chatting rogues and the two quietened instantly, knowing that any mentions of Hadrian being in danger would only provoke the blonde. Thus, it wasn't until three candlelights later that the others heard the story and Alistair's fists clenched around the wooden cup so hard that it broke. He apologized profusely afterwards for breaking one of Leliana's cups but the female archer would have none of it for she understood how Alistair felt about not being there for his lover.
"He'll be fine," Leliana said in a comforting tone. "Morrigan had healed most of his injuries before we left the Deep Roads. He's just tired and needs rest."
"I hope you're right," Alistair replied and he absently removed an errant lock of hair from his lover's forehead. The wolf stirred restlessly inside him but Alistair clamped it down, not wanting to gave into his baser instincts in front of so many people. From now on, he wasn't ever going to let Hadrian go out of his sight.
-TBC-
A/N: I just realized that I totally forgot about adding Oghren towards the end of this chappie! Well, I'll think of something to explain his absence at the campsite. Unto other matters, hope you all like this filler of a chapter. I would have updated way sooner but working nights for the past three months is brutal on the body and mind.