Arrows whizzed through the air as Linn dove behind a house for cover. Darkspawn charged at them from all directions. Sten charged forward to attack the archers, and Linn attacked them with lightning. Zevran kept to the shadows before leaping out at the darkspawn, while Leliana drew their attention with her arrows. Linn sweared quietly as she realized that she had left the only real Grey Warden at Redcliffe Castle.
After the group had reached Redcliffe for Sten's sword and to restock supplies, Linn had wanted to check out the nearby town that the merchant had mentioned. Alistair had wanted to stay behind to see if the Arl's study would reveal any other clues about Andraste's ashes, and Wynne had appeared to be feeling unwell. Morrigan had seemed engrossed in the grimoire, so Linn had taken Sten, Leliana, and Zevran to Honnleath. It was a quaint little town. Surely, it would be a simple trip.
Linn ducked back behind the house as the archers focused on her. The sound of the arrows' impact on the wood in front of her made her wince. All this nonsense because of a control rod and a golem. Taking a deep breath, Linn gathered her magic. Without Wynne or Morrigan here, surely the others wouldn't notice her unusual brand of magic. Her face grew hot as the magic pooled in her chest. She could feel where the darkspawn were hiding. Digging deep into her magic, she filtered it out and into the ground. Linn peeked out of her hiding spot to see the darkspawn now held in place by thorns.
"That's better!" Linn said in relief before she charged forward and summoned flames.
The darkspawn screeched in guttural fury as the flames grew, but soon they burned to dust. Linn checked around the town. Sten stood at her side, and Leliana and Zevran jogged toward them to regroup. Not a single villager could be seen or heard. Linn felt an odd hollowness in her throat as she looked at the once-thriving village.
"Perhaps the villagers took refuge in one of these buildings," Leliana said with a small thread of hope in her voice.
"Check the houses," Linn replied as she walked toward the statue in the middle of the town. "Maybe we can find some survivors."
Linn walked to the golem and took out the control rod. She whispered the words that the merchant had told her, and… nothing happened. Linn waited a moment before she put away the control rod with a sigh. Clearly, the merchant had been lied to. With a groan of frustration, she wandered towards the nearest house. The door opened to reveal a staircase.
"Ah, a cellar! Perhaps we can find some fine wine for a fine day's work," Zevran said cheerfully, and Linn glared at him. "Or perhaps the villagers will be down there. Ready to be saved."
Linn looked back at the dark staircase before leading the way down. More darkspawn littered the hallways, but Sten charged forward to draw their attention. Zevran, Leliana, and Linn attacked from the darkness. Soon they had made their way into a room with a strange purple barrier… and more darkspawn. Linn and Leliana took advantage of the darkspawn's focus on the barrier, attacking the darkspawn before they could turn around. Sten and Zevran charged forward to draw their focus as Linn and Leliana continued their attacks. Soon the last of the darkspawn fell to the ground.
"By the Maker! We're saved!" a woman cheered, and Linn turned to see that there were villagers behind the barrier.
With a sigh of relief, Linn walked closer.
One of the villagers asked with a hesitant tone, "You weren't sent by the Bann, were you? To save us?"
"No," Linn answered, deciding that they needed to know the truth. "I came here for that statue outside… and to ask whoever owns it a couple of questions?"
The villager looked at her with confusion as he asked, "The statue outside? Why would– Oh! I think I see. You bought the control rod, didn't you? You came here looking for Shale."
The strange barrier disappeared, revealing another barrier beyond it. The villagers ran out, and the villager introduced himself, "I am Matthias. This cellar belonged to my father… That damnable golem brought us nothing but trouble. My mother sold the rod years ago after it killed my father, and good riddance."
"Killed your father?" Linn asked, wondering if this entire trip was for nothing.
Matthias explained with a tired sigh, "My father's name was Wilhelm, mage to the Arls of Redcliffe and hero of the war against Orlais, and what did he get? One day my mother found him outside the tower with so many broken bones she could barely recognize him. And Shale standing over him just like it is now. My father deserved better than that, but if you truly want to wake it up, then it's yours now."
"So… you don't mind me having it?"
Matthias looked toward a door in the distance with worry before he turned back to the group. His voice was now tinged with desperation as he said, "Look, I know you have more important things on your mind, but I really need your help. I know you already saved my life, and I'm grateful. But my daughter is inside the laboratory. She was afraid and ran too far in for me to stop her. I don't know how she made it past my father's defenses. One of the men went after her. He was killed, but… you could find her, couldn't you?"
Linn glanced to see Sten eyeing the man with distrust as Leliana looked at Matthias with sympathy. Zevran however… His eyes met hers as he watched her with a playful curiosity. Linn quickly looked back to Matthias.
"Okay… but in return, I want the code word," Linn said, and Matthias hesitated. "Look… I know you said that golem killed your father, but the darkspawn are attacking in droves. I need every bit of help I can get. Please…"
The man let out a large sigh before he reluctantly agreed. He let them know a little more regarding his father's defenses before they continued to go deeper into the cellar. The feel of darkspawn disappeared as they got deeper inside the cellar… but now it was replaced by a familiar feeling.
"Demons!" Linn shouted to the others.
Linn steadied herself as shadows formed into demons. Using fire spells, she managed to keep them at a distance. Sten made short work of them with his blade. After the last demon fell, they continued onwards. Linn silently cursed the mage who had made this place as they neared a shaky bridge overhanging over rocks. The sound of a little girl talking made Linn pick up her pace before a thought made her stop dead in her tracks.
"Is something wrong?" Leliana asked at Linn's sudden reluctance.
"The only one who made it past the defenses was the girl," Linn murmured as she looked at the door warily. "So who's she talking to?"
Zevran's eyes widened, and he gripped his blades. Sten readied himself as Linn opened the door to a little girl playing with a cat… with glowing eyes. Linn entered the room while checking for exits. The only way in or out was through the door behind them. The girl waved and greeted them cheerfully before asking them if they wanted to play.
"No, Amalia," Leliana said sweetly. "We're here for you. Are you okay?"
Amalia looked at the group, and Linn felt chills go up her spine. The child wasn't possessed yet, but the demon had charmed her somehow. The girl spoke up, "You should go if you're not going to play. Kitty finds you distracting."
"Amalia, we need to leave," Linn urged while keeping the cat in her sights. "Your father is waiting for you."
"I can't go!" Amalia whined. "Kitty says she can't come and I'm not leaving her. She'd be lonely."
"You are so kind, Amalia," a voice said gently. "I would miss you dearly if you left."
"Snap out of it, Amalia!" Linn said quickly as the girl covered her ears. "You need to get away from that thing! Hurry!"
"No! Leave me alone! Kitty!" the girl cried out pathetically as the demon gave Linn a smug look.
"Nothing you say will convince Amalia to go with you. She loves only me now. I am her friend while you are a stranger."
With a sigh, Linn took out her flask and warned, "Look. This is about to go one of two ways for you right now, and you're not going to like either of them… But I'm not leaving without the kid."
The demon watched her with curiosity as it seemed to be trying to work out what Linn was… and if she was a threat. Finally, the creature replied, "It seems we are at an impasse, so let me propose a… compromise of sorts. Release me, and let me have the girl. Let us return to her father and leave this place forever."
"You mean possess her? Because there's no way I'm going to let that happen."
"That's such a crude way of putting it," the demon chided Linn irritably. "I do not wish to harm Amalia. I merely want to see your world through her eyes. Is that so wrong?"
"Yes," Sten concluded with a glare at the demon.
"Look… I'm tired, and I want to leave this place. So I'll let you go, but I won't let you possess the girl. That's the best I can do," Linn offered with a glare at the demon.
"Hmm," the demon muttered as it looked at Amalia thoughtfully. "But I do like this one!"
Amalia replied cheerfully with her glazed-over eyes, "I like you too, Kitty!"
The demon turned its attention back to Linn and continued, "But if it means escaping this place, I am willing to leave on my own. I agree to your terms. The mage's wards hold me within this chamber, and only a mortal may approach them."
"Okay… I'll see what I can do. Stay back."
"Oh, this is so exciting! Kitty is going to be free!"
"Don't forget our deal," Linn warned as she walked over to the strange puzzle on the ground. "I will not hesitate to kick your ass if you forget."
The demon glared at Linn in response, but Linn focused on the problem at hand. A flame on the ground used the arrow pattern to jump from one tile to another.
"What the hell is this?" Linn muttered irritably as she shifted a tile into the empty space. "I hate these damn puzzles."
"Why are we playing its game?" Sten asked angrily. "This is a waste of time. We should kill the demon and be done with it."
"Normally, I would agree," Linn admitted with a glance at the demon cat. "Unfortunately, I assume that if we try to kill it, then it will possess the little girl. I've got a plan… Just go with it."
Sten sighed but looked at the puzzle. He started moving the tiles as Leliana helped him. They had seemed to find the pattern as Linn stood back with Zevran out of their way. As the last puzzle piece slid into place, Linn quickly darted in between the demon and the door.
There was a change in the air as the barrier fell, and Linn warned the demon cat, "Now… do as you promised and leave. The girl stays."
The demon took a deep breath and said, "Ah… I can feel it fading. Oh… I had forgotten how it feels to not be caged."
Amalia looked confused as the demon's magic wavered, "Kitty? What's happening?"
"A wonderful thing, my dear, for the both of us," the demon said with a cadence that Linn didn't quite like.
"Hey, fleabag! Did you forget what I said already?" Linn warned and took a step forward.
"I have changed my mind," the demon said, and Linn took the top off of her flask. "I like this girl. I do not think I will find another like her."
Amalia clapped her hands with glee and said, "Oh! So I get to go with you after all?"
Leliana spoke up with anger as Linn watched her notch an arrow, "You will leave the girl, or you will not leave at all!"
"Bah! I will take her anyhow! She is mine!" the demon's voice changed with its anger.
Amalia's eyes widened, and Linn could now see the fear in them as the girl backed away from the demon. "Kitty, you're scaring me! I won't let you inside of me! I won't!"
Linn ran forward and kicked the demon cat into the flames. Amalia ran for the door as Linn felt a familiar heat. The floor glowed red in four spots as rage demons formed from the shadows.
"What a bother," Linn muttered before pouring the holy water into her mouth.
The rage demons focused on Linn, and she waited until they were all in range before spitting out the water into a holy mist. The demons screamed as the water sizzled on their lava-like flesh. Linn quickly hit the closest one with an ice spell. It froze in place before Sten shattered it into pieces. A scream filled the air, and Linn felt herself being thrown across the room. The flask knocked out of her hands.
The cat demon had transformed into a desire demon, and its eyes were now focused on Linn with seething hatred. Linn used her staff to help her stand before blasting the demon with fire. The demon ran toward her with a single minded focus. Linn focused her magic and put up a barrier. The demon collided with the barrier, but it no longer seemed to be in a rational state of mind as it clawed at the invisible wall. Linn focused on the barrier. She needed to keep the demon's attention while the others focused on its underlings.
"None of this had to happen!" Linn shouted at the demon. "You could have just walked away, but no! You had to renegade on the deal. Not very good at being a demon, are you?"
"I will crawl inside of you!" the demon threatened as it attacked Linn's barrier. "I will use your body to find Amalia, and then we will be together! Forever! And you cannot stop me!"
"Big talk from a kitty-cat," Linn mocked the demon.
The demon unleashed a wave of energy, and the barrier cracked. Linn readied herself as the barrier came crashing down. The demon smiled with glee as it took a step toward her before its expression changed to shock. A blade pierced the demon from behind. The demon disintegrated as Zevran appeared behind it.
"Thank you," Linn said with relief, and Zevran looked confused for a moment before he hid it behind his mask of cheerfulness.
"At your service as always," Zevran said with a cheeky smirk.
"Let's get out of here," Linn said as she looked around the room. "And take what you can find on the way out. Hopefully, we'll find something to make the trip worth it."
