It was slow going at first, no one in a real rush to face an army of undead, but knowing we had to get there to save those people was enough of a push. As I looked around I noticed Morrigan had lulled her steps and was toward the back of the group. I slowed, allowing the others to get ahead of me and her to catch up.
"Hello Morrigan," I said with a smile. She nodded, continuing to look ahead. "We haven't been properly introduced, my name is Kora." I waited, still no reaction from her. "I don't know if you're aware but I am privy to quite a bit of information on the group we are traveling with, as well as you." Nothing. I sighed, realizing there was only one way to get her attention. She needs something big. "I know about the ritual your mother intends for you to perform with one of the wardens," I said quietly. She stopped dead and gave me an evil glare that made my blood run cold.
"And how would you know anything about my mother?" she asked, pure venom seeping from every word.
"I know more than you do, apparently," I whispered as I looked ahead to be sure no one was close enough to listen in. "But that is something that will be remedied when we go to the circle. Your mother's grimoire is still there, intact. You will get the answers you seek." Her face went from hatred to confusion then curiosity.
"Indeed you do know a great deal," she said as she eyed me carefully. "Speak."
"I know your intentions with Alistair but, as you can see, he is not your only possible choice now." I motioned to the group now about 20 feet ahead of us. "And I am not going to hinder or stop you. I see no reason to." She still just stared at me with those yellow eyes, attempting to burrow into my mind. I cleared my thoughts, centered and focused on her, keeping her out of my head. She smiled.
"You have training," she said. I raised an eyebrow at her. "I sense you have certain abilities that… wait, you don't know?"
"Know what, Morrigan?" She paused then crossed her arms.
"And why should I tell you anything…" she grinned, "Templar?"
My eyes narrowed, looking for the deception in hers. But there was none, just her gleaming yellow eyes staring back at me with arrogance. I schooled my face and cleared my mind again. "I have no memory of templar training. I have no memory of anything before a tragedy that occurred in another realm, another place." Then a thought occurred to me. "You wouldn't know anything about that, would you Morrigan?" She laughed.
"Even if I did, why would I reveal it to you?" she asked, keeping her arms crossed. I smiled.
"I would rather that you help me willingly, considering what our success will do for you and the secrets I am keeping," I said slowly, "but if you do know something of my 'travels' and are withholding it…" I let her draw her own conclusions, raising my eyebrows and heading back down the path.
"I'll let you consider your options," I said, not looking back. "I look forward to your decision."
I continued trudging down the winding road, eventually catching up with the others. As I carried my increasingly heavy pack and tent toward our destination a thought occurred to me making my heart jump up into my throat.
Bodahn and Sandal!
They had been under attack in the game, darkspawn were all over them on the bridge that led to the highway. Trying to think back to what the bridge looked like when we came to it, if there was any sign of a struggle or remnants of their wagon, I stopped paying attention to where I was walking and bumped head first into Cailan's shield that was strapped to his back.
"Ow!" I hissed as I stopped and rubbed my forehead. He swung around and grabbed my arms to be sure I was alright, glancing at my latest head injury.
"I'm sorry, did my shield jump out at you?" He joked as he pushed my hair aside to inspect the mark. I dropped my pack and tent to the ground and grumbled up at him.
"Great, another funny one, must have gotten your sense of humor from your father," I mumbled as I grabbed his hands to stop him. He smiled apologetically and I sighed. "Sorry, I'm a bit grumpy right now, not your fault." I smiled weakly and rubbed my head again. Roman walked up to us and grabbed the top of my head in one of his hands roughly, eyeing the injury.
Roman was anything but subtle. A full-fledged great sword warrior, he was rough and tumble and sweet as pie when no one was looking. Taller than Caden, his long gray hair was always tied back at the nape of his neck, hanging down his back to just above his belt. The tanned lines on his face told a tale of a long, difficult life, and his gray eyes gleamed with the possibility of the calling. Broad shoulders and large, scarred hands aside, he was a teddy bear. I smirked up at him as he held my head.
"She'll be fine," he grumbled as he released my head with an affectionate shake. Slapping his arm as he walked away I picked up my pack and tent. Cailan grabbed the latter away from me and swung it over his back, covering his shield.
"Don't need anyone else hurting themselves, now do we?" he smiled with a wink and continued down the path, leaving me standing there wondering what possessed him to be so… chivalrous.
Cailan had been quiet up to that point, speaking to Duncan occasionally but mostly keeping to himself. The brief interaction we had just shared was the first since my unveiling of knowledge at the edge of the stream. I wasn't sure what to expect after that conversation; whether he would retract further into his arrogance as a way of protecting himself or if he would face the circumstances head on and become a better man for it. The result was yet to be seen, but one thing was for sure. Between his long blonde hair, deep blue eyes and that killer smile, I understood why no woman stood a chance against him.
I blinked the heated thoughts away, shook my head and continued walking as Leliana grabbed my free arm and dragged me along with her.
"Sooooooo…" she started as I rolled my eyes. I knew what was coming next and I was not looking forward to it. "Which one have you laid claim to? I do not want to step on anyone's toes now, do I?" she grinned mischievously. I smiled and looked forward.
"I own no one," I said simply. "That being said, I can give you the low down on anyone you may want to know about. Ask away." I winked at her conspiratorially.
"Ooooh…" she whispered, pulling me closer, "how about the tall one with the blonde hair?"
"You'll have to be more specific, there are a few blondes here." I smirked as she turned back to me and I pointed at my own head. She quirked an eyebrow.
"I did say tall, no?" she asked. I jabbed at her side and we both laughed. She pointed to Caden and I cocked my head.
"That is my twin brother," I said slowly, letting the meaning of that statement sink in, "he is strong, fast and fiercely protective. He's like a mabari in that aspect, and stubborn," I whispered with a grin. "Part of his charm."
"Good to know," she said, putting her finger up to her lips thoughtfully. She then pointed at Cailan. "I know who he is, but what are your thoughts on him?" I raised my eyebrows, wondering the same thing myself.
"Cailan is… different," I said slowly. "I know how he was, arrogant, selfish… but now?" I shook my head and stared at him as he chatted with Alistair, both of the men laughing at something that was said. "I'll have to get back to you on that."
And her gaze slowly moved to Alistair. "What about him?"
My heart skipped a beat. What about Alistair, I asked myself. Don't sound like a love-sick teenager, I said inwardly as I took a deep breath.
"Everyone stop, quiet!" Bran came barreling back through the line, whispering hoarsely, "there are soldiers ahead." Leliana and I glanced at each other and dropped our packs, following Alistair and Cailan to the front.
Duncan and Jaden were talking quietly but animatedly as Marcus and Caden slowly made their way back toward them through the wooded area that apparently separated us from the soldiers' camp. I glanced at Leliana and, remembering her "talents", I walked over to Duncan and Jaden.
"About 20 men in all, well stocked and armed," Caden reported to Duncan. Duncan nodded and turned back to Jaden.
"We cannot take the chance," he insisted quietly as he shook his head. Jaden appeared extremely frustrated as he crossed his arms and huffed.
"YOU talk to him, Kora, he's not listening to me right now," he growled as he uncrossed his arms and stalked away toward the back of the group. I looked at Duncan and watched him sigh, shaking his head.
"Patience is not something that can be taught," is all he said as he looked back toward where the soldiers were camped.
"I may have an alternative," I whispered as I glanced back at Leliana. "She's a shadow rogue, she can get close enough to get more detailed information and report back." He turned to Leliana and pondered the idea for a moment as Leliana stepped forward.
"I assure you, commander, I am quite capable," she whispered confidently. Squaring his shoulders, Duncan nodded his head toward the camp.
"Be careful, take no unnecessary risks and get back here quickly." He walked away. When he was out of ear shot I winked at Leliana and motioned for her to follow.
"I'll come along as far as I dare," I whispered as we approached the ridge, "I want to get a look too, just in case there's something important you may not recognize." Leliana nodded and motioned for me to crouch down.
We made our way over the small ridge and, on our stomachs, moved closer to the camp. We were still quite a few feet above their heads so it was easy for us to remain concealed. As Leliana disappeared in a puff of smoke I began scanning the camp over the ledge.
"You little bastard!" one of the soldiers yelled as he back-handed a much shorter person, the size of a child. The only reason I knew he was not a child was I recognized that white-blonde hair…
Sandal!
My stomach clenched when I heard the blow hit and saw him fall to the ground. It took every muscle in my body not to jump up and run at the man, decapitating him. A few minutes later Leliana reappeared and motioned for us to go back. I had all I needed. We had to get the dwarves out of there.
Enraged I walked over to Duncan and attempted to get control over my facial expression and emotions to no avail. He looked at me questioningly. Turning away from Cailan, whom he had been speaking to, he faced me and nodded for me to speak.
"We have to take out that group," I whispered breathlessly and with a conviction I had not felt since the Inn. I wanted to kill the man that hit Sandal as much as I wanted to kill Loghain. Loghain, Howe, and all their men had to die. I suddenly realized how angry I was and became a bit frightened, where was all this rage coming from?
"Apparently they are part of the infantry that we scared away in Lothering," Leliana explained. "They are aware there are wardens that are alive and they have orders to hunt them down. Also, they have hostages, Commander," Leliana gave Duncan a pained look, "innocents that they are physically assaulting as we speak. We must help them." I looked at her and smiled gratefully; glad I wasn't the only one who was not going to stand for it. Duncan looked at Cailan who nodded.
"I cannot stand by and allow this," he said softly as he dropped his bags and my tent to the ground. Brandishing his sword and shield he nodded toward the camp. "What's the plan?" Duncan nodded his agreement, dropping his pack and pulling out his sword and dagger.
"Cailan," he whispered as he eyed his sword. "You will take Leliana, Alistair, Kora, Jaden and Solana over to the right, I will bring everyone else to the left and forward. Brock, you will be our distraction, get their attention and, once their backs are turned, everyone else move in. Quickly and quietly, let's get this done." I nodded and secured my shield to my arm.
Following Cailan to the place Duncan instructed, I cased the area looking for cover and weak points. I saw a large rock obscured by some trees to one side and a series of bushes to the other. I motioned to Cailan and he nodded, tapping Solana's arm and pointing to the rock. She nodded and moved around behind us to take up her position. I then pointed to Leliana and the larger of the bushes. Grinning as she took out her bow, she winked and disappeared into her signature purple smoke. Motioning to the rest of the group, Cailan had us hunker down as we waited for the signal.
I almost jumped when Brock screamed out his war cry. When I noticed that the soldiers had moved away from Bodahn and Sandal's cart I saw Cailan nod to Leliana to start her bombardment, then to Solana for healing only. A finger to his pulse point was all the hint the mage needed and she stayed hidden, watching and waiting. Then he nodded to the rest of us and we all jumped up and ran into the fray.
Shield bashing one in the back, he fell flat on his face so I shoved my sword in between his shoulder blades all the way through then yanked it out. I then moved to the next one with his back turned and swung low, taking his right leg almost clean off. Marveling at how sharp my sword was I made a mental note to ask Alistair if he was messing with my stuff when I wasn't looking.
Making my way through the fray I came back to back with Alistair, blocking a sword that threatened to flank him and punched the attacker in the face. The pain from the punch made me hiss, shaking my hand to try and relive it. Seeing his back was clear, I rolled away and toward Sandal.
"It's alright, Sandal, we're here to help," I yelled over the fighting as I holstered my shield and sword to untie his hands. "Where is Bodahn?" He pointed weakly toward a small wagon that I recognized as theirs, spotting a small foot protruding from a blanket. I swore to myself and after getting him untied I lead him to the wagon. "Stay with him and stay down," I commanded as I boosted him up into the cart.
Then, when I turned around to look for another target, I felt a crack in the back of my skull.
Everything instantly went black…