Author's Note: A extra long chapter this update. Thanks to everyone reviewing and following along! (You're all amazing!)
So, I took a stab at explaining the "Ranger" specialization for Rogues, because it's not really one you can learn in-game from anyone like Isabela or Zevran or Leliana, and it isn't really explained at all. Just suddenly, inexplicably, you can summon animals... whenever you want. Oh hai there, giant bear. How YOU doin'? Wanna kill some people for me? And that's weird. So, slowly but surely, I'm winding my way around that.
Chapter 44 - The Lair of the Werewolves
Traveling through the mysterious pool was bizarre. All Serena could feel was freezing cold all over her body and Alistair's firm grip on her hand, and then quick as it began, they were dropped onto a stone floor in a passageway much like the one they'd just left. Beheaded statues lined the walls, and a few charred bodies were strewn about the floor.
"Great. More dead things," Serena muttered. Alistair pulled her up and they moved over to the only exit from the room, a large metal door. "Why is it never candy littering the ground? Or... delicious smelling bath soaps...?"
With a loud thump, Sten landed behind them, his hand on his sword hilt. "That was unpleasant."
"That's the understatement of the age," said Alistair quietly, rubbing his sore backside.
They stood back as one by one their companions came through the strange portal in the far wall, until finally Morrigan was left dragging a knocked-out mabari behind her.
Serena ran over to her hound, cradling the poor dog in her arms. "Peanut! What happened? Is he okay?"
"The mutt is fine," Morrigan replied, brushing dog hair off her robes. "I had to put him to sleep to get him to come through the pool."
"Marvelous how the dog will down a decaying corpse without a second thought, but any sort of magic causes him to freeze on site," Zevran remarked.
"It's not the magic, it's the heights." Serena stroked the dog's fur as Peanut slowly came around again. "Isn't it, boy? You just don't like jumping from high up, do you? You're just a big old softy, aren't you?" She scratched his ears fondly as the hound slowly got up, giving Serena a tentative slurp on the cheek. "That's a good boy, yes, no more sleepy time."
Serena straightened, regarding her companions. "Assuming this door opens, we should be ready for anything. It could be werewolf city in there."
"Ugh, flea heaven," Alistair murmured, pulling his sword from its sheath. Serena saw her companions follow him in kind as she pushed open the metal door and walked inside.
Serena peered about the room, taking in the enormous crumbling columns. It looked like it had once been a throne room of some sort. Did the elves even have royalty? Ah, questions for another time, she told herself quickly. Perhaps when they weren't constantly fighting for their lives. Alistair came up beside her, his sword still held at the ready, as they started down to the main floor.
"I don't like it in here," Leliana called from near the entrance. "I think we should go back. I have a very bad feeling-"
With a snarl, a pack of werewolves leapt from the shadowy corners of the room, surrounding their party on three sides. Serena felt Alistair push himself in front of her as one of the wolves bolted for them, pouncing on top of Alistair as he moved to block it with his shield. The werewolf flailed as he slammed it to the ground, bringing his sword around to cut into its chest.
All around them the wolves were flinging themselves forward, snarling and howling. Serena saw Sten take on two of them himself as Leliana pulled back, her bow in hand, shooting arrow after arrow across the room. Beside her, Wynne casted a glowing rune on the ground that kept the wolves away from them. Zevran was cursing in Antivan as he fought his own opponent near Serena as she and Alistair engaged two more wolves, Serena's blades cutting deep into the furry flesh.
"Serena!" She felt Alistair grab her arm and fling her away as a werewolf leapt from atop one of the toppled columns and bared down on him, jaws gaping. Serena shrieked in horror as the wolf bit down on Alistair's shoulder, once, twice, the two of them rolling across the floor, Alistair desperately trying to pull the wolves' head from him as blood droplets sprayed from both.
"Alistair! No!" Serena screamed and she sprinted for them, barreling into the hairy beast with her daggers out. She felt the wolf roll under her as they tumbled across the floor, her blades hitting any fur she could reach. She felt its hot blood cover her as she screamed, over and over, unable to stop herself.
"No! No! Never!" She kicked the wolf into the air with her feet, launching it across the room as it collided with a column, leaving a bloody smear down the side. Filled with rage, Serena rolled, gathering her legs under her to sweep another wolf off its feet and slammed her dagger down hard into its skull as it yelped.
Two more wolves came at her, Alistair forgotten now, and she flipped backwards, landing a kick into the first one's muzzle. It howled and she threw one of her daggers at its face, landing it neatly in its eye as it dropped to the ground. In one smooth motion she dipped to the ground, grabbing the dagger back and brought it up into the middle of the second wolf, ripping it through its chest. The werewolf clawed at her arms, but she held on, pulling the dagger all the up to the fiend's neck. The wolf's innards spilled out across her as she kicked it back to the ground, panting for breath.
Her adrenaline spent, Serena turned, her eyes wide and frightened. Finding his prone form, she collapsed at Alistair's side, her hands going to his shoulder as he gasped in pain. "It's okay, it's my… I can... I can... oh, Maker, it hurts so much..."
Serena pulled one of the health poultices from her pack in a rush and pressed it to his ruined shoulder, her eyes burning as tears slid down her face. She pressed harder to the wound as he rocked beneath her hands, holding tightly to her arms, as the healing compound did... nothing.
"No, no, this... no, you couldn't... Wynne... any- please..." Serena felt herself nearing hysterics as she held the poultice to his bleeding shoulder. The exposed skin was quickly turning veiny and black, as if the wolf's poison were already taking hold. Alistair's eyes were closing and she shook him, her tears falling on his cheeks. Was she crying? She must be crying. Why couldn't she stop crying?
His blood was dripping steadily onto the ground now, covering her hands, covering the shreds of his splintmail armor. "Please, no, wake up, you have to... Alistair, no! WYNNE!" This couldn't be happening. This was not happening...
The older mage ran to them, the blue healing magic already pushing its way from her body into Alistair. "Please, please, Wynne, tell me he's okay. He's okay, right? He's fine, he's fine!" She felt hands pull her away as Zevran gripped her tightly, her body clawing at the dirty stones to go back to Alistair.
"No! No! Alistair!" Her fingers clutched at the ground as she cried out, pulling desperately as the assassin held her tight. "Please, just let me-" She could see Wynne working quickly as Morrigan joined her, adding her own healing magic to speed up the process.
"No… no, he can't... Alistair, don't leave me!" Serena's face was anguished as she clawed the ground, screaming, trying to find a grip to pull herself out of Zevran's hold. Her chest was heaving, her eyes wild and crazed. "I have to... please! Please, Zevran, let me go, he could- he could..."
"Come on, Serena, you can't hover over them, you have to let them fix him," Zevran said calmly, thankful she wasn't any stronger otherwise he wouldn't have been able to hold her back while the mages worked. Leliana came to help him, her hands working expertly to gather Serena's bloody hands back.
"He will not die, Serena," the bard whispered fiercely in Serena's ear, and Zevran felt all her energy drop out as the bard stroked Serena's head gently. "Alistair is tough, he will make it through this."
"He will? He will... He can't go..." Serena nodded her head, her eyes still streaming tears as she leaned on Leliana, her body going limp in Zevran's arms. "I love him so much, Leli... He can't die... He can't leave me. I... I..." Her words trailed off into hiccuped sobs as she buried her face in Leliana's shoulder.
"He won't, dear heart, I promise." Leliana put her arms around Serena's broken form and Zevran felt his heart twist at the sight of their leader looking so utterly lost. It had only been hours ago when the two Wardens had been smiling and laughing with each other... Barely a care in the world, or so it seemed.
The assassin glanced over at the man in question and saw to his own relief, Alistair was breathing again, albeit raggedly. Wynne and Morrigan were whispering over his fallen form, and the word 'infected' caught in his ear.
"I'm… ugh… f-f-fine," Alistair coughed out, his voice cracking unpleasantly. He groaned as Wynne helped him to sit up. "I... just... it was just a scrape. Bit of a... scratch. I'm fine." Like a hawk, Serena's head swung towards Alistair at the sound of his voice and she crawled away from Leliana and Zevran, touching Alistair lightly. Zevran watched as the two stared at each other for a long moment, something silent passing between them, before they wrapped their arms around each other, Alistair wincing slightly, but refusing to let go of her.
"I'm fine, Serena. I'm fine. Look, Wynne and M-Morrigan... It's okay, Serena, please don't cry..." Alistair gently rocked her in his arms as her mabari came by and gave him a big wet lick. "It'll take more than some... overgrown furbag to... to knock me out, my lady." His voice cracked again, making the joke sound oddly pitched. Over Serena's shoulder, Zevran could see Alistair's mask of respite break as worry creased his forehead. So he had heard the mages, then, and was keeping it from her.
"We should get to this Witherfang, immediately," the elven assassin said, his voice unusually hard. He saw Leliana look at him sharply and he frowned. "This has gone on long enough."
They found the werewolves rapidly enough, Zevran leading them through the passageways quickly. Since his... incident... with the werewolves Serena hadn't let Alistair out of her sight; her blue eyes were constantly searching him, examining the wounds on his neck and shoulder that still refused to heal properly. The upper portion of his armor was nearly in tatters, torn apart by the wolves' claws and teeth, and Alistair couldn't help but feel the chill against his rapidly burning skin.
The worry in Serena's face was blatant, but she said nothing, and Alistair couldn't blame her. He knew, somewhere deep down, she did not believe his whispered reassurances that everything was fine, but was trying to be a good leader, to not alarm the rest of their companions.
Infected. That's what Wynne had whispered, and Morrigan's cold yellow eyes had confirmed the diagnosis as she stared down at his wounds. Was it pity he saw there in that moment? Pity for the man she could barely stand. Alistair never thought he'd live to see the day when the daughter of the dreaded Witch of the Wilds would feel any empathy for him.
In the large chamber before them the group of werewolves stood, the injured Swiftrunner with them, and Alistair could feel his blood boil at the sight of them. Serena gripped his hand, and he had to will himself not to tremble with the rage that was burning inside him. He would not become one of them!
"Stop! Brothers and sisters, be at ease!" The shaggy werewolf held up his paws and Alistair watched as Serena released his hand and stepped forward. "We do not wish any more of our people hurt. I ask you this now, outsider... are you willing to parley?"
"Yes," Serena said simply. Her body looked tiny standing in front of the massive wolves. "Take me to the Lady of the Forest."
"You know of the Lady?" the werewolf asked.
"I do. I wish to discuss a truce. I will not hurt her. There has been enough of that already." Serena bowed her head and Alistair saw a small shiver run down her spine. "Please, take me to her."
"Follow me," breathed the wolf. "But I warn you, if you break your promise and harm her, I will come back from the Fade itself to see you pay."
Serena nodded solemnly, following the werewolves through a door and up some steps into an even larger room. Unlike the rest of the ruins, this room must have been nearer to the surface, as trees and vines covered the walls, the forest working hard to reclaim the wreckage for itself.
The rest of the party followed further behind, Leliana moving in to support Alistair as they walked. He already missed Serena's warmth at his other side, and a slight tremor seemed to take over where she had stood. He could feel the eyes of the werewolves on him and their group, watching him closely, growls low in their throats.
"You are being very brave for her, Alistair," Wynne said quietly as she stepped up beside him, resting a hand on his arm. He felt her healing magic soak into his skin, but it did nothing to ease his anxiety. "I thought, perhaps I wanted to believe, that this was simply a... physical attraction gone awry. Young people can be so impetuous sometimes... But I was wrong. I... apologize... for doubting you two." The older woman bowed her head. "I just wanted to say something before… well... Before it was too late to do so."
Alistair glanced at the older woman, then his eyes unconsciously swung back to Serena. She was nearly to the dais where the majority of the wolves stood. "Thank you, Wynne." He knew she meant well, but... he shivered with the morbidity of her apology. The mage patted his arm again in response, smiling sadly as she moved away.
They watched as a greenish woman with long dark hair came to stand between the wolves on the dais. She had strange vines twining up her legs to cover her body, and her hands ended almost in branching tendrils, as if she were made of the forest itself. One touch from her, and all of the werewolves went silent, and Alistair felt a chill creep up his own spine, causing him to shiver again.
"I bid you welcome, mortal. I am the Lady of the Forest."
"Thank you, my Lady. I am Serena. We have come to discuss the curse that infects your people, that infects the Dalish..."
"And now infects your people, too, Serena," the Lady replied. Her dark eyes glazed over the companions, landing on Alistair. Well, so much for trying not to worry Serena, he thought bitterly.
"You cannot listen to her, Lady! She will betray you! We must attack her now!"
"Hush, Swiftrunner," the Lady whispered. "Your urge for battle has only seen the death of the very ones you have been trying to save. Is that what you want?"
"No, my lady." Swiftrunner bowed his head in shame. "Anything but that."
"Then the time has come to speak with this outsider, to set our rage aside. I apologize on Swiftrunner's behalf, he still struggles with his nature."
A tear slipped down Serena's cheek, and Alistair could hear the sadness in her voice as she spoke to the strange woman. "As do we all, dear Lady." Maker, he wished more than anything he could be beside her right now. That he had the strength to go to her… As it was, without Leliana, he would barely be able to stand on his own.
"Truer words were never spoken. But few could claim the same as these creatures. That their very nature is a curse forced upon them." The Lady of the Forest glanced at her brethren with her strange opaque eyes, then back at Serena. "I am glad you have come, mortal. I sensed you in the forest; your capacity for empathy is quite great. I had hoped you would be able to help us, to understand our plight. No doubt you have questions, however. There are... things that Zathrian has not told you."
"I had assumed as much," Serena replied. "It is true he sent us here, to find the source of the curse that now infects the Dalish. That... that now infects my love. But that isn't all of it, is it?"
"No. It was Zathrian who created the curse that these creatures suffer, that now causes so many to suffer. Centuries ago, when the Dalish first came to this land, a tribe of humans lived close to this forest. They sought to drive the Dalish away." The Lady's voice was almost hypnotic, and Alistair felt his body ease at the sound of her voice. "Zathrian was a young man then. He had a son and a daughter he loved greatly, and while out hunting, the human tribe captured them both."
"The humans... tortured the boy, killed him," Swiftrunner added. "The girl they raped and left for dead. The Dalish found her, but she learned later she was... with child. She... killed herself." The werewolf's head dropped, and the Lady stroked his fur gently. "Zathrian came to this ruin and summoned a terrible spirit, binding it to the body of a great wolf. So Witherfang came to be."
"Witherfang hunted the humans of the tribe. Many were killed, but others..." Again the werewolves all seemed to look at Alistair, and he stepped back, feeling their curse burn in his veins, fighting with the darkspawn taint. "Others were cursed by his blood, becoming twisted and savage creatures."
"They were driven into the forest. When the human tribe finally left for good, their cursed brethren remained, pitiful and mindless animals." The Lady peered about, her eyes still opaque, almost unseeing. "I showed Swiftrunner that there was another side to his bestial nature. I soothed his rage, and his humanity emerged. And he brought others to me."
"And so you waited for the Dalish to return," Serena said quietly. There was no contempt in her voice; she was simply stating a fact. "To ambush them... to force Zathrian's hand, as it were."
"We seek to end the curse, this is true. The crimes committed against Zathrian's children were grave, but they were committed centuries ago by those who are long dead." The greenish woman shook her head. "Word was sent to Zathrian every time the landships passed this way, asking him to come, but he has always ignored us. We will no longer be denied."
"We spread the curse to his people!" Swiftrunner bellowed savagely. "So he must come and end the curse to save them!"
"Please, mortal... I can sense your connection to the Forest within... you must understand, please... go to him, bring him here. If he sees these creatures, hears their plight as you have, surely he will agree to end the curse! It is the only way to cure your people, as well."
"Yes, he will no longer be able to refuse us. I will make him see reason." Alistair saw Serena glance back at him briefly, her eyes locked onto his shoulder. He cursed silently to himself, knowing he probably shouldn't have even bothered to try to hide it.
"Thank you, dear girl," the Lady said quietly. "In return for your help, I offer you a gift, to aid you through the forest." The strange woman reached out, and Alistair saw Serena kneel before her as her branching fingers touched her forehead. The buzz of energy rumbled in his blood, and Alistair watched in horror as Serena's head fell back, her arms falling limp at her sides as a greenish light pulsed from the Lady's hands, pushing into her skin.
"Serena! Serena!" Leliana and Zevran held him back as Serena stood again and turned, her eyes glowing white. He could see the quick flash of vines pattern across her skin, and then it was gone as swiftly as it'd come. "What did you do to her?"
"The power to touch those around us, to understand the forest, was already inside her," The Lady called to him. "And now she can control it. Mold it to her will. I have made her more powerful this way. The Forest will know her; it will respect her." The Lady of the Forest turned back to Serena, pointing to a door. "Outside of this chamber, the passage leading back to the surface has been opened for you. Return with Zathrian as soon as you can."
"Yes, my Lady," Serena replied, curtsying gently. "Morrigan, please come with me, if you will."
The dark haired witch glanced at the others, shrugging. Her golden eyes found Alistair's and she nodded to him. "She will come to no harm with me." Alistair nodded back weakly, his blood was starting to burn in earnest now... had Zevran and Leliana not been holding him, he probably would have collapsed to the floor long ago.
He watched as Serena and Morrigan left the chamber, his body sagging into itself. Leliana helped him to the ground, putting a soft hand to his forehead. "You are burning up, Alistair... Wynne, could you…?"
"Mad and hairy," he murmured. "I can feel it push through my veins..." He coughed, and saw red splatter the ground. "Oh, Maker... don't let her see me like this, Leliana..." He felt the cooling touch of Wynne's magic soak into him again, but it wasn't helping. The fever had already set in. Alistair was going to become one of them, he just knew it.
"Alistair, stay with us, Serena will be back soon." The bard pushed his sweat-soaked hair away, her blue eyes looking pained. Alistair dropped his head to avoid her gaze. Those blue eyes looked so much like Serena's... He gasped, his lungs burning suddenly. How horrible he must look now... so pale and sickly... he felt like he was slowly dying, being turned inside out from the curse raging through his body.
Minutes passed like hours for Alistair as he lay on the ground, his body losing control of itself. He could felt his cuts bleeding freely again, Wynne's magic only able to help so much... The curse would not allow him to heal until… until he changed… He knew that now... Could feel the truth of it inside his very bones.
The side door banged open again and Zathrian strolled in, flanked on either side by Serena and a large black wolf that could only be Morrigan. The elven keeper marched onto the dais, fury rolling off of him in waves.
"Serena... how did you all return so soon? Their camp is hours away..." Alistair could hear Leliana's voice just barely, everything sounded so far away now. Was he going deaf too? Or was this just part of the curse's madness?
"Zathrian was in the ruins," Serena replied. Her eyes flicked back to the Dalish leader. "Waiting for us."
"So, here you are, spirit," spat Zathrian. Immediately Swiftrunner ran to the green woman's side, straightening himself to his full height so he towered over the elf.
"She is the Lady of the Forest! You will address her properly!"
"You've taken a name, spirit?" Zathrian spat out. "And you've given names to your pets? These... beasts who follow you?"
"It was they who gave me a name, Zathrian," the Lady replied, her voice infinitely cool compared to the rage-filled Dalish man. "And the names they take are their own. They follow me because I help them to find who they are."
The elf laughed cruelly, his eyes narrowed in hate. "Who they are has not changed from whom their ancestors were! Wild savages! Worthless dogs! Their twisted shape only mirrors their monstrous hearts! Discontent with infecting my clan, I see you have taken more hostages in your sick game!"
"He will not help us, Lady!" Swiftrunner cried, appealing to the forest spirit. "It is as I warned you! He is not here to talk!"
"No, I am here to talk, though I see little point in it," Zathrian replied, his lip curling in disgust. "We all know where this will lead. Your nature compels it, as does mine."
The forest spirit shook her head sadly, as if the elven man was simply acting like a child. "It does not have to be that way. There is room in your heart for compassion, Zathrian. It has been centuries. Surely your retribution is spent."
"My retribution is eternal, spirit, as is my pain! This is justice, no more."
"Justice? May I show you what your justice now looks like, Zathrian?" Serena's voice sounded close, and suddenly Alistair could feel her, smell her wonderful scent. She was pulling him, lifting him, her and another, and then they stopped.
"Look into his face." Serena's voice was baleful, snapping through the room like lightning. "This is the man that I love, and now he has the curse swimming in his blood. Tell me to my face that this is justice. I did not harm your family! We did nothing but offer to help your people, and you have the nerve to tell me this is justice?"
The elf looked indifferently on Alistair, shrugging his shoulders. "I am... sorry you were dragged into this, but the boy's... affliction... is easily solved and you know it!"
"I do know it. We all know it, Zathrian," Serena said, and her voice was laced with steel. "Let go of your hate. You built this curse, you alone can end it. For your people, for mine, for everyone."
"And such a powerful curse it is," The Lady added. "Such powerful magic. Witherfang and I are bound as one, but such powerful magic could not be accomplished without Zathrian's own blood." The spirit paused, and Serena saw the elf look down in shame. "Your people believe you have rediscovered the immortality of their ancestors, Zathrian, but that is not true. So long as the curse exists, so do you."
"No, that is not how it is!" Zathrian cried. He turned to Serena as she held Alistair in her arms. "I... it..."
Serena stroked Alistair's hair; tears were now falling down her face again as she held his haggard body in her arms. "How far will you go for your revenge, Zathrian? Will you let him die?"
"I did it for my people! I did it for my son, and my daughter! For them, for justice... I would do anything!" The elf backed away from them all, and Serena could see him putting up walls behind his eyes to block out their voices of reason.
"The curse would not end with Zathrian's death," the forest spirit said. "His life, however, relies on its existence. And I believe his death plays a part in its ending."
"What would you gain from killing me? Only I know how the ritual ends, and I will never do it!"
"You even hold back your own people from the cure," Zevran called the elven man. "To not help strangers, I could forgive, but the Dalish as well? Your own brothers and sisters... This is not what a true leader does."
Serena looked up miserably at the centuries old keeper. "I am pleading with you, Zathrian... the world is so much bigger than your individual pain; surely you know this! I know you have it in you to find mercy... please, if you could only..."
"Enough! I will hear no more of this!" He pointed a stern finger at Serena. "You have chosen to side with the beasts, and all of you will suffer as you deserve!" He whipped his staff around and Serena felt her body immediately stiffen as Zathrain paralyzed them with a spell. She and Alistair fell to the ground, unable to support each other's weight, and she watched as Sten came from behind, lifting them both easily.
"I do not know if you can hear me, but I will kill him for you, if you'd like," Sten said in his slow, dispassionate voice. He set them down and turned away, returning to the battle at hand. Serena watched in horror as Zathrian called the trees to his aid, and they bore down upon her companions and the werewolves both.
Swiftrunner, Zevran, and some of the werewolves that had been standing near Zathrian were likewise frozen in place, as the remaining combatants attacked the Dalish leader and his band of living trees. Morrigan, still in her wolf form, launched herself at him, ripping his robes straight across as her claws bore down on the elven man. She could see blood color the shape-shifter's mouth.
Sten crashed into the trees; his sword scattering leaves and branches as he cut them down systematically. Leliana had her bow out again, covering Wynne as she ran to Serena, already weaving a counter spell to their paralysis.
Quickly, Serena found feeling return to her limbs as she shook her shoulders out. Propping Alistair against the wall carefully, she sprinted past Wynne with a shouted "Protect him!" as she headed for the Dalish leader, her daggers already out. With a flying kick, she landed on the elf's back, pushing him to the ground, his staff flying out of his hand.
"You threaten the lives of those I hold dear," Serena whispered fiercely, kneeling hard on his back. "Yield now."
"No, no more. I... I cannot... cannot defeat you." Zathrian struggled to get up, and Serena pressed down with her knee, pushing his face back against the stones. "I... I yield."
"Finish it!" Swiftrunner shouted. Serena saw that Zevran and the others had been released by Wynne's spell now as well. "Kill him now!" The werewolf lunged forward, his eyes on the fallen elf.
"No! Don't kill him! Please, Lady, stop him!" Leliana's call came from a few feet away, where she was holding Alistair between herself and Wynne. "Please, he has to help us! Our friend will die!"
The forest spirit put out a hand, and Serena saw the werewolf howl, but move towards her no further. "No, Swiftrunner. We will not kill him. If there is no room in our hearts for mercy, how may we expect there to be room in his?"
Serena rolled off the man's back, picking him up roughly by his robes. "Hasn't this gone on long enough, Zathrian?"
"P-perhaps... I have... lived too long. This hatred in me is like an ancient, gnarled root... It has consumed my soul." The bald man looked over the werewolves, then at Alistair. "What of you, spirit? You are bound to the curse just as I am. Do you not fear your end?"
"You are my maker, Zathrian," the Lady replied. "You gave me form and consciousness where none existed. I have known pain and love, hope and fear, all the joy that is life. Yet of all things... I desire nothing more than an end. I beg you, maker... put an end to me. We beg you... show mercy."
"You... shame me, spirit. I am... an old man, alive long past his time..." The elf shook his head, as if he couldn't believe that he was saying the words coming out of his mouth.
"Then you will do it? You will end the curse?"
"Yes," Zathrian sighed. "I think it is time. Let us... let us put an end to it all." Zathrian raised his staff and a blueish-green light erupted out, covering all in the room, and then the elf fell to his knees, pitching forward, his eyes blank and staring.
"Did he...?" Serena ran to Alistair, her arms wrapping around him as he sagged against her. "Are you...?"
The Lady of the Forest sighed, and a bright light enveloped her body as Zathrian's magic took hold. Serena could see the werewolves, and now Alistair, were all glowing, shining with the same bright white light. Shutting her eyes against the intensity, she felt Alistair shake in her arms as she struggled to keep hold of him.
"Serena..." Alistair's voice was barely a whisper but Serena could feel the strength coming back into him, he was finally able to hug her back. "I love you, Serena."
"Oh, Maker, Alistair, I thought... I thought I might..." She pulled him close, her face disappearing into his neck as they held each other. "I love you so much."
Around them, where wolves had stood, now bedraggled humans were getting to their feet, tatters of clothing hanging off them as they looked at each other, gripping hands or hugging in delight.
"It's... over. She's gone, and… we're human. I can scarcely believe it." A brown haired man stepped forward, touching Serena's shoulder. "Thank you. We... we'll never forget you. Any of you." He nodded to them, and then turned back to his fellows.
"We shall leave the forest, I think. Settle among other humans. Our time in this place is done." The other humans were slowly nodding, many still touching their faces as if they couldn't believe their luck.
"Maker be with you all," Serena said tiredly, as the former wolves skittered from the chamber quickly. Serena looked about, she was still holding Alistair's hand, unable, or unwilling, she wasn't sure which, to let him go. Her companions all looked as exhausted as she, and without saying anything, they turned and exited the chamber, heading back to the Dalish camp.