Author's Note: This chapter is a little late getting out, my apologies. I have been swamped with projects. I have most of the next chapter written out, so bearing time constraints, I should have it wrapped by next week. Thanks to all of you reading and reviewing, it means quite a lot every time I get a message in my inbox.

Chapter 83 - A Wandering Soul, Part 1

"Good evening, Morrigan. How are you?"

She would be queen if she survived this final battle, Morrigan thought, as she watched Serena take a seat on the rug beside her hound, stroking the mutt's coat gently, waiting for Morrigan to speak. Her blue eyes were red-rimmed, from exhaustion, no doubt. She looked like she could use a warm bath more than anything else, and for a moment, Morrigan felt a pang of guilt as she knew Serena would not be able to rest for quite some time still.

"I am well, Serena. 'Tis you who are in danger." She would not turn to face Serena. She didn't want to see her face. "I have a plan, you see. A way out. The... loop in your hole. I know what happens when the archdemon dies. I know a Grey Warden must be sacrificed, and that sacrifice could be you. I have come to tell you... this does not need to be."

"What? I..." Serena shook her head, as if trying to clear it. "What do you mean you know? How?"

Morrigan smiled, and knew her face must have been relaying a certain amount of arrogance. "I know a great many things. How I know is not quite as important as what I am offering you, however. I offer a way out. A way out for all the Grey Wardens, that there need be no sacrifice. Not for you, or Alim, or... Alistair. The blonde, the Dalish man... and any others that may be fool enough to try. I can protect you all."

"You can? How? Riordan said-"

"He would not know of it. This ritual... performed on the eve of the blood moon, in the dark of night... it is old magic, from a time before the Circle of Magi was created. Some may call it blood magic, but that is but a name. There is far more to fear in this world than names." The witch paused, looking unsure of how to continue. She did not want to spook Serena. "Only few know it, my mother among them, and now... since you procured her Grimoire for me, I have known about it for some time now."

Serena frowned, quickly working out what that meant. "So you knew about the sacrifice before Riordan told me?"

"I did," Morrigan replied. "Would you have believed me if I had been the one to tell you?" She raised one delicate black eyebrow. "I have my doubts."

"Perhaps that's true," Serena said with a small shrug. "So what's this loophole?"

"What I propose is this: convince Alistair to lay with me. Here, tonight. And from this ritual a child shall be conceived within me. The child will bear the taint, and when the archdemon is slain, its essence will seek the child like a beacon." Morrigan paced the room as she spoke before she finally took a seat near the fire. "At this early stage, the child can absorb that essence and not perish. The archdemon is still destroyed, with no Grey Warden dying in the process. You and Alistair shall be safe."

"What about the child? Would it... become... would it change? From the taint?" Serena put her hands to her temples, trying to think through everything Morrigan just told her. "Wouldn't it become a darkspawn itself? Would it harm you?"

"Not at all. It will become something different... a child with the soul of an Old God." Morrigan's voice sounded intoxicated and husky, as if this was something one should be exhilarated by. "After this is done, you allow me to walk away... and you do not follow. Ever. The child will be mine to raise as I wish." The witch's golden eyes bored into Serena's. "I know you, Serena. You mustn't follow me. It is the price I require in exchange for my saving all of your lives."

"I haven't agreed, and you haven't saved anything yet."

Morrigan scoffed. "Do not be stupid, Serena. It is the only way. This is the reason why my mother sent me with you. Did you not wonder why Flemeth saved your life, why she aided you? This is why!"

"Why Alistair? Why not Alim? We could-"

"I have thought this through, Serena. It must be tonight. The child must be conceived tonight. And if you care for Alistair as you seem to, you will convince him to do this. Consider what the alternative might be... one or both of you die, the baby you carry inside you... lost."

Serena felt hallow. The baby. Closing her eyes, she sunk into one of Eamon's plush chairs. She didn't think this evening could have gotten much worse, yet here they were.

"The loss to Ferelden would be even greater," Morrigan continued. "It's new king, and future queen and heir..." She made a soft clucking noise with her tongue, as if she was disappointed that Serena had not come up with them herself. "I think you have many good reasons to tell him to save his own life. I think you should consider them carefully."

"And what of this child you plan to bring into the world," Serena murmured. "What happens to it?"

"Allow me to say that what I seek is the essence of the Old God that once was, and not the dark forces that corrupted it. Some things are... worth preserving in this world. I learned that from you."

"Fine."

"Hm?"

"I said fine, Morrigan. I will speak with Alistair." Serena ran a hand through her hair. Her limbs felt heavy. Her whole body felt burdened, as burdened as her heart and mind now were, it seemed.

"A wise decision. I shall wait here, then, while you go and speak with Alistair." Morrigan pulled Serena to her feet. "I urge you to be... convincing."

Every step down the hallway towards Alistair's room felt heavier and heavier. Serena's worry over the future had finally come to a head. She had often felt on this journey that she hadn't really had a decision; things happened, usually awful, and she had done what she thought was best. Her group had been exceptionally lucky... some serious injuries, and but nobody had died.

And now one of them would most assuredly die. Unless she did something about it.

She knocked swiftly, harder than she meant to, but Alistair must have been near the door anyway, as he opened it right up. He smiled when he saw her, and Serena felt her heart thump uncomfortably.

"I see you can't sleep, either," he said, stepped to one side to let her in. He had changed out his more formal clothes and padded armor and into the light sleeping clothes he wore at night. Alistair eyed her, and Serena knew he noticed she had not changed yet. He usually jovial face went dark. "Come in, love."

Someone had set his fireplace going, and Serena gravitated towards it, towards its simple heat. "I'm sorry for barging in," she said softly.

"I'm not. Though, I haven't seen you look this upset since the Alienage... sit down. Tell me what's wrong." Alistair took a seat in the chair opposite her, leaning forward expectantly on his knees. "It's Morrigan, isn't it? I saw her outside your room earlier, and the look she gave me... that was icy, even for her." He frowned. "What has she done this time?"

"You're brilliant, you know. People don't give you a lot of credit in that department, I think it's because you make such cheesy jokes... but you really are one of the smartest people I know." Serena smiled weakly. "I love you."

"I love you, too, but... what? What is going on?"

"I... we have to talk. I have... news."

Alistair raised an eyebrow skeptically. "This is what I get for becoming king, you know. Everyone always brings you the bad news." He sighed. "So what is it, then? Rats running amok in the larder? Cheese supplies run low? I can take it."

"Morrigan wants to do... a bit of magic. A ritual. Tonight." When Alistair said nothing, Serena took a deep breath and continued. "It involves you."

"She's going to turn me into a toad, isn't she?" Alistair said. He nodded to himself, his face serious, as if he had been expecting this for days, weeks even. "I knew it. I knew this day was coming." He shook his head, mouth twisted up. "She's been planning this all along, I bet. It would cause chaos, you know, with Loghain dead and Anora... Sweet Maker, Anora would take control of the throne again-"

"Alistair, she doesn't want to turn you into a toad."

"So then-"

"She wants... she wants to perform a ritual that will... that will protect us from the Archdemon. From... from what Riordan told us we have to... She knew about it." Serena took another deep breath and the words quickly began to tumble out. "She said she knew all along, about how it would be one of us, one of the Wardens, that one of us would have to die in order to stop the Archdemon, but... but Morrigan said there's a ritual. A ritual that can stop it. That can changes things so we don't have to die."

"Dark magic, I bet. Blood magic." Alistair leaned back in his armchair and drummed his fingers against his pajama-clad knee. "My templar sense was tingling, you know."

"It's probably blood magic, or older than blood magic, I don't know... but she needs you in order to complete the ritual. It has to be tonight, and Maker knows I don't want to ask you this, but she said it had to be you and it had to be tonight and I don't want any of us to die, Alistair. I don't want us to die and I don't want to lose our baby." Serena put a hand to her mouth, feeling tears spill over her hand from her cheeks. She hadn't realized she was even crying. "I felt it kick today, I felt our baby, and I... I don't want to lose what we have."

In two steps, Alistair had stood up and crossed the short span between their chairs, and pulled her up into his arms. "We will never lose this baby. It's a gift from the Maker that we even... we are not losing this baby. I'm not losing you, and I'm not losing this baby. We'll find a way." He held her tight and Serena's face pressed into the striped cloth of his night clothes. "Tell me about the ritual."

"She said you... you..." Serena choked back another round of sobs. "You have to lie with her. Tonight. It's to... to make a baby... that will..." Another stream of tears leaked out her eyes as her voice muffled itself against his chest. "A baby that will... will absorb the soul of, of the Ar-r-r-chdemon."

"She what?" Alistair shifted Serena back a bit. His eyes were wide as he tried to understand what she was saying. "Calm down, calm down. She wants to what?" When she opened her mouth to repeat herself, Alistair held up a hand. "No, no, I heard you. That's just crazy. Morrigan wants to... wants to... sleep with me, to have an... archdemon baby."

She nodded. "Y-y-your archdemon baby," Serena stammered out in between hiccups.

"Of course! My archdemon baby. How can I forget that it will, in fact, be my bastard archdemon baby? That is... that is a totally sane thing to want, you know. From a completely sane person. And we... you and I... are completely INSANE for even entertaining this craziness. We have officially lost our minds."

"I know how it sounds, but..."

"But it's actually serious." Alistair shook his head. "Wow, by killed by the archdemon or sleep with Morrigan. How does someone make that kind of choice?" He frowned. "Why would she even want such a thing? Does she want an heir to the throne? Why doesn't she have Alim do it, he's a Warden, too."

"He's not here, and it has to be tonight."

"I... Maker, Serena. Are you sure? Are you sure this is what you want me to do?"

"Of course I don't want you to do it, but... I..." Serena clutched at her tummy compulsively. "I... I don't know that we have a choice in the matter. Please... trust me. Trust in us."

"Trust you? I... Of course I trust you, Serena. I'm doing this for you, for our baby." Alistair sighed, his face looking more strained than she had seen it. He rubbed his face, his eyes, his temples, as if trying to push away an approaching headache. "Where is she? Let's... get this over with before I... change my mind."

Morrigan was waiting in her room, her back to them as they came in. "'Twould seem your talk is done, I take it?"

"Great. So this isn't a dream after all," Alistair murmured. His voice sounded scratchy to Serena, and she felt her eyes burn with tears. "I can't believe I agreed to this."

Morrigan turned, her golden eyes flipping between the two of them. "What is it to be, then? Has a decision been reached?"

"Alistair has agreed to your... request," Serena said softly.

"You know, dinner would have been nice... maybe a bit of wine? Or you could knock me out, first..."

"Tempting." Morrigan narrowed her eyes at Alistair. "Still, I am glad to see that it has been done. Let us go somewhere more private, Alistair. And believe me when I say you will not hate this quite so much as you believe."

"I don't know, I believe I'll hate this quite a lot." He shook his head, looking quite miserable.

"Morrigan... do you have to... Maker, I can't..." Serena shook her head and fled the room, her hands over her face.

"Great, nicely done," Alistair replied. His face was set in hard lines as he followed Morrigan to the bedroom. "Let me ask you, do you even care about her at all? Serena..." He paused, frowning. "Serena is to be my wife... my queen. I..."

Morrigan rounded on him quickly, jabbing a finger at his chest. "She is the closest thing I have ever had to a sister, fool. If there were any other way to save her life, I would do it." The witch turned and dropped grimly on the bed. "There is no other way."

"I never thought I would ever sleep with anyone other than her," Alistair said quietly. "You promise this will keep her alive? It will keep us alive? All of us alive?"

Golden eyes narrowed on him again and Alistair had to look away from the woman. For a second he wondered if this demon baby would have those eyes. He shivered.

"Do you honestly believe I would subject myself to your inept caresses if I didn't know this would produce what I said it would? You act as if I've been plotting this all along."

Alistair turned dubious eyes on the witch. "Haven't you?"

"No. When I found out why a Grey Warden is necessary to destroy the archdemon..." Morrigan sighed. "As little as I care for you, Serena... is like a sister to me. She has always looked out for me, always been there when I needed her. I would... I could never allow... if she didn't die killing the archdemon, surely you would, and she would be lost to us all anyway. The only way to protect her is to protect you both. Not to mention that tiny... you... growing inside her now."

"I love her."

"Anyone who looked at the two of you together could see that," Morrigan replied caustically. "Serena would rather die than allow harm come to you. She has told me as much. As much as this is hurting her now, in the end... it will be worth it. Serena knows that. She would not have come to you otherwise."

They sat in silence for awhile, both simply staring ahead. Finally Alistair sighed heavily, and began unbuttoning his shirt.

"Let's just... get this over with."