Author's Note: Part 1 of a two chapter update! Hooray! Hope you all following along are enjoying the story, and thank you for the reviews!
Chapter 17 - The Lightning Struck Tower
The bridge was complete chaos.
Serena stood at the edge of the camp, Alistair to one side, and her mabari on the other. "Well, looks like we'll have to fight our way across," the man remarked casually, more than a touch of excitement in his voice.
"And to think," Serena teased. "You were worried we'd be bored." She exchanged glances with her fellow Grey Warden and grinned. "This should be exciting."
The bridge itself was a mess of darkspawn bodies and broken bits of rubble. As they moved across, she heard one of the king's archer's shout to his men. "They have an ogre! Coming our way!"
"Serena!" She heard Alistair's shout and dived to the ground, rolling near him as a boulder came hurling through the air towards the bridge. It crashed a few yards in front of them, exploding into a shower of dust and debris. Alistair held up his shield to protect them from the worst of the rocky ash as Serena watched Peanut run forward into the dust cloud.
A moment later the hound dragged a man out who was clutching his arm, screaming in pain. Serena crawled over to his side as Peanut pulled the man to her. "Alistair! I think it's broken!"
"We can set it," Alistair answered, dragging his shield over and propping it against the man's back as protection. "Hold him down," he instructed Serena. "This is going to hurt."
The guard nodded, tears leaving dirty trails through the layer of dust that had settled on his skin. Serena leaned over and pressed on the man's chest and other arm, her knees bracing his legs. Alistair pulled a long bandage from his pack. He broke a spear in half and laid it against the man's arm. His mouth set in a grim line, Serena looked away as there was the sound of a loud crack and the man howled in agony.
She moved to hold his set arm as Alistair wrapped it tightly. They helped him up and Serena pointed in the direction the camp. "There's a few healers just inside that purple tent!" She pushed lightly at the man to get him moving. "Run! Run!"
The guard stumbled forward, his arm hanging in its new splint awkwardly as he ran. Serena watched the skies for a moment, praying silently for the man to make it safely to the healers.
It was almost dark out, but the sky still lit up with magical spells being hurled at the darkspawn horde. She could see warriors and their mabari charge forward, clashing with the second wave of monsters. Flaming arrows littered the night as screams, both human and darkspawn, could be heard below.
Alistair stood next to her, watching the battle below with an unreadable expression. She took his gloved hand in hers and squeezed it. Alistair looked at their hands and then at her face and smiled, although Serena could see it was strained. He picked up his shield and tugged her forward. "That ogre isn't stopping, and he looks to be aiming to take down the entire bridge."
She nodded and they both sprinted for the tower, her mabari easily keeping pace at their side.
"The Tower is just ahead!" Alistair shouted, as another huge rock crashed into the bridge behind them. Serena felt the ground quake beneath them as she grabbed onto one of the toppled statues to keep her balance. She turned to one of the men still standing on the wall.
"Take out that ogre now or else he'll take the whole bridge!" She shifted her pack, reaching for a short bow one of the older Grey Wardens had given her in the camp. She nocked an arrow into it and aimed for the great beasts chest. "Is there a mage on the wall?"
The guard pointed to a young elven man two yards down firing spells into the valley below. Serena waved to the mage, signaling him over to them. "Get him to light your arrows, I have to keep going!"
"Thank you, Warden!" the guard shouted, gesturing quickly to his other men to target the ogre. "We'll hold the bridge as long as we can!" She nodded once and ran to rejoin Alistair at the edge of the path to the Tower. She could see the remaining guards swarm around the mage with their bows as his hands caught fire. Within seconds, volleys of flaming arrows poured from the bridge into the valley below, and the monstrous screams of the darkspawn could be heard.
"What were you doing?" Alistair asked, surveying the land around the tower.
"They have to down that ogre or we'll lose the bridge," Serena said, breathing hard. "Loghain's men will be cut off..." She looked up and her eyes went wide. She quickly nocked another arrow into her bow and pulled it back. It flew into a fat darkspawn running towards them from the tower. She hit it right in the neck and it toppled to the ground, his body twisted at bizarre angles.
"Maker's breath!" Alistair shouted, pulling his sword. "Where'd you learn to shoot like that?" More darkspawn flooded from the tower and Serena pulled arrow after arrow, knocking the creatures back as Alistair alternated between pommeling them with his shield, and hacking them down with his sword. Black ichor dripped from the blade as Alistair cut their way through to the tower entrance.
"Oh, here and there," Serena quipped, catching another darkspawn in the face with an arrow. "I had a lot of free time around the castle, you know!" Beside her, Peanut leaped forward, tackling a darkspawn to the ground.
"Grey Wardens!" A dark haired mage ran towards them, his staff bright with pulsating magic. His robes bore the symbol of the Circle of Magi. "The tower... it's been taken!" Two guardsmen flanked the mage, both had their weapons drawn.
"What are you talking about, man?" Alistair shouted. "Taken how?"
"They came up through the lower chambers!" one of the guards shouted over the roar of the battle. "The tower crawls with them! Most of our men are dead!"
"Then we have to get to the beacon and light it ourselves!" Alistair said.
The mage nodded quickly, whipping his staff around and firing a spell behind them. A bright ball of fire erupted from his staff and struck a tall darkspawn in the middle as he toppled over in flames. "My brothers and sisters are dead," the mage said simply, his eyes hunting the field for more of them before settling on Serena. "I will follow your command, Warden."
"Wait, what? My command? But Alistair-" Serena turned to her fellow Grey Warden uncertainly but he simply waved her forward. "Alright, let's go then." She turned to the guardsmen and pointed. "You two stay here, guard this entrance as best you can. We can't have them coming at us from two ends." The guardsmen nodded and spread out, their weapons at the ready.
Serena turned back to the mage. "What's your name?"
"Rahim," the mage answered. "I am one of the senior enchanters with the Circle of Magi."
"I'm Serena and this is Alistair." They entered the tower and she pointed to the door. "Can you seal this so those guards aren't overwhelmed?" Rahim nodded, lifting his staff and marking the door with magic.
"They will be able to enter, but nothing will be able to leave unless I drop the barrier... or I die." Rahim looked about the tower's entry way curiously. "Will you be using your bow or those daggers, miss?"
Serena considered for a moment but it was Alistair who answered. "Use your bow, I don't want you engaging them unless you have to. Your dog and I can lead the way, with you and... I'm sorry, you said it's Rahim, right? You and Rahim can fire at them from afar."
"I ask simply because I had planned to start casting," Rahim answered. "I can enchant your weapons with fire. It will not harm you, but should provide extra damage to these... monsters."
"Sounds good," Serena said, nodding to both men. "Let's get going, but... stay alert. If they can ambush an entire tower, who knows what else they're capable of?"
"Agreed," said the mage, coming to stand by her. He did a complicated gesture with his hands and Serena and Alistair's weapons burst into flames. Alistair pulled his long sword, glancing at it in awe as the flames licked along the blade.
"Wow." He glanced towards the archway beyond, his eyes narrowed. "Do you feel that?"
"There is something... or perhaps many somethings... hiding just beyond," Rahim replied.
Serena touched her temple; a slight burning had begun in her head, mixing with fear and adrenaline. "Yes, it's darkspawn." She turned to the men, a twinkle in her eyes. "Let's not keep our new friends waiting now, hmm?"
Peanut barked and moved to walk at the front with Alistair, while Serena and Rahim brought up the rear. The hound sniffed loudly along the ground, pausing at the entrance to a large round room. It must be the main floor of the Tower of Ishal, Serena guessed. An enormous statue of King Calenhad the Great dominated the room, as broken barricades were strewn across. It looked like something had rushed through here recently, and quickly.
Alistair moved forward cautiously, his flaming sword at the ready. Serena nocked a new arrow into her now-fiery bow and followed him, her eyes roaming the ground. "I can sense them, but..."
"Yes, I don't see them, either," Alistair said, his mouth set in a deep frown. Beside them, Peanut let out a quick bark, nosing against the inner entryway. Serena kneeled beside him, feeling around the area with her hands. She felt a thin rope run just above the floor and followed it. "It's a trap, stay there," she called. "There's a rope, I think it's rigged to this barrel to explore or something."
"Can you diffuse it?" asked Alistair.
"I'm afraid if I cut it, it'll explode anyway. Perhaps they were expecting us to run through here and activate it? We should be able to step over it, it's not very high." Serena moved awkwardly, stretching her legs out over the rope.
She saw Rahim hike up his long robes and do the same, followed by Alistair. Peanut backed up and took a running leap, landing gracefully next to Serena. "Show-off," she muttered to the dog, smiling.
Wandering through the room, Serena couldn't shake the eerie feeling of being watched, like those monsters were just beyond their field of vision, waiting to strike. Beside her, she could hear the mage chanting softly.
Suddenly, Alistair took off, his boots stamping against the stones. "Genlock, right over there!" He swung his flaming sword and caught the short darkspawn right under the chin, slicing his head clean off. The head hit the ground with a wet splat.
Serena pulled her bow and fired a flaming arrow into the next darkspawn that appeared, but the tall monster just bellowed, ripping it out of his chest and continued his run at Alistair.
"No! Not him!" Serena pulled one of her daggers and threw it hard, landing it right in the creatures face. It screamed and stumbled back, just as Alistair reached it, sinking his blade into its stomach. He pulled Serena's dagger from the monsters face, kicking the dead darkspawn back with his boot.
"Come on, you beasties!" Alistair shouted. He sheathed Serena's dagger for her at her belt and turned back, heading into the next room with Peanut. "You know we're coming for you!"
"Are you two...together?" Serena turned, and found Rahim was standing right beside her, leaning on his staff, his dark eyes were thoughtful. "I was unaware that the Grey Wardens allowed that sort of thing." He paused, a small smile on his lips. "Perhaps like at the Circle Tower, you may look but you can't touch?"
"No, no, we're just..." Serena fumbled for the right words. "No. We're not together. I mean, I... we only met a few days ago."
"I understand," the older man replied, nodding, that small smile still present. "Forget I said anything." He picked up his staff again and followed her into the next room, where the mabari and Alistair were making short work of two darkspawn warriors. Peanut had one down immediately, his jaws ripping into its throat, while Alistair parried blows from the rusted blade of the taller of the two.
Serena noticed the mage had taken up chanting again, his lips moving noiselessly as he recited the words. "What are you doing?" she asked. Rahim held up one finger in a gesture of silence as Serena watched Alistair spin on his heel and cut through another darkspawn with his long sword.
"Did you see that?" Alistair called. "Serena, tell me you saw that!"
"It's a spell called Heroic Offense," Rahim said, following Serena into the next room where her mabari was already sniffing around the stone staircase. Alistair's face seemed to crumple slightly at the mage's words. "So you mean what I just did... wasn't me? It was a spell?"
"The spell merely enhances abilities," Rahim replied, his face calm. "It does not create them, young man."
"Oh." Alistair continued to pout as they crossed the room to the staircase. Serena caught up to him and elbowed him lightly in the ribs.
"That's a good thing, you goof," she chided him gently. "It means everything you do is you, just a... faster, smoother you."
"Oh!" Alistair grinned at her, his smile contagious. "I wish I was a mage... I'd cast that on myself all the time then." He winked at Serena and she felt her face blush slightly.
"What could you possibly need to be smoother at?" she asked, her voice laced with false naiveté. She put a gloved hand under his chin for the briefest of moments. "I mean, other than this stubbly business you have going here."
Alistair snorted. "You saw me this morning, Serena. What wouldn't I need to be smoother at?"
"Hmm, good point," Serena teased. She dropped her voice so only Alistair could hear her. "Maybe it's just the spell talking, but I think you're plenty smooth right now."
"Must be the spell," Alistair said, a sly smile on his face. "I always seem to lose it around the pretty girls." He sighed, slumping his shoulders in mock defeat.
"Good thing it's just Peanut, Rahim and I then, huh?" She pushed open the metal door at the top of the staircase, putting an extra sway in her hips. Behind her, she could hear Alistair groan.
"Yes, no beautiful women here," Rahim agreed, a twinkle in his eye. "Although I have to say, your hound is very handsome." Beside him, Peanut barked his approval and they all laughed.
"Aww, did you hear that, boy?" Serena said to the mabari. "You have yet another admirer."
"As a native Fereldan, I'm afraid I have quite the soft spot for dogs," Rahim said, scratching Peanut around the ears. "It's a shame we aren't allowed them at the tower."
"From the way I hear it, you lot aren't allowed a lot of things at the Circle Tower," said Alistair.
"Very true." The mage sighed, using his staff almost as a cane. "It could always be worse, though. At least within the tower, my fellows surround me. Many of the apprentices see it as a prison, but they have... never been victimized for what they are. To me, the tower is a sanctuary." Rahim shrugged. "Just don't get on the templars nerves."
They wound their way through the remaining floors, taking down small pockets of darkspawn along the way. One of the floors had been apparently used as a storage space for the army before the horde had moved in. Serena kneeled at one of the chests, picking the lock.
"Should I even ask where you learned that little trick?" Alistair asked over her shoulder.
"Ah... hmm..." Serena shrugged, popping the lock open. She replaced the pin into her hair. "My brother, actually. He used to sneak food from the kitchen but ah, my Nan found out and started locking the larder at night. Not that a lock would stop Fergus."
"Is there anything you can't do, my lady?"
Serena paused, thinking. "I'm quite bad at cards, come to think of it..." Alistair grinned and kneeled beside her, his smile warming her from the inside despite the chill of the tower.
Turning back to the chest, she pulled out what looked like a small pack of health poultices and a large bottle of lyrium. "Ohhh... Rahim! Here!" Serena tossed the bottle to the mage, who caught it easily. "Might come in handy, right?"
Alistair leaned over and pulled out a handful of small throwing knives. "You should probably take these, Serena. I'd be rubbish with them." He held out his hand and pulled her to her feet. She took the knives and stashed them in a pouch on her belt.
"Wardens... over here!" Rahim called. He was standing in the next room, staring down into a large hole in the floor.
"This must be how they swarmed the tower," Serena said, eyeing the trench uneasily.
"Maker's breath... what could have dug that?" Alistair leaned over the hole, his eyes wide. "What were these darkspawn doing ahead of the rest of the horde? There wasn't supposed to be any resistance here!"
"You could try telling them they're in the wrong place?" Serena suggested, smirking.
"Right... because clearly this is all just a big misunderstanding. We'll laugh about it later!" Alistair looked around, searching the floor. "That must be the entrance to the top of the tower... We need to hurry and light the signal fire in time. Teyrn Loghain will be waiting!"
They ran up the rest of the stairs to the top of the tower, Alistair and Serena taking them two at a time. A metal door was all that separated them from the beacon now, and Serena readied her bow as Alistair pushed it open.