I am Lena Wolf, Lena's life as it happens Options

[Lena Wolf]

This is Two Worlds II, although Antaloor is also the setting of Two Worlds I.

Ah, I see. Interesting that Hauk does that chapter on his own.

There's a reason for that... Not saying anything else... Nope, nope...

[Lena Wolf]

Morning Star, 3E411 - Bonds of the past

"It isn't supposed to work like that and you aren't even a princess," Lucanis smiled when Anders finally woke up from his hypothermia-induced unconscious state responding to Lucanis' kiss.

"I've been awake for some time already," Anders smiled back. "I was waiting for the kiss."

"Well, alright, get out of the bath tub then," Lucanis handed him a towel. "Since you say you're awake..."

He walked over to the door and locked it, then started undressing.

"What are you doing?" Anders looked up in surprise from under his towel.

"I haven't slept the night, I need some rest," Lucanis shrugged. "As do you."

"Umm..." Anders finished drying himself off and threw the towel aside. "If you say so."

Lucanis added some logs to the fire and came close, taking Anders in an embrace, then lifting him up.

"I can walk!" Anders protested.

"I carried you from that snowed-under hill all the way to here, I can carry you a few more paces," Lucanis shook his head. "Shush."

He carried him to the bed and put him down gently, then got into bed too.

"You had me worried," he said, starting a languid, deliberate kiss. "Que tengo miedo a perderte, perderte después..." The song they danced to in Treviso played in their heads, the danger of losing each other staring them in the face.

Lucanis moved closer, sliding between Anders' legs and pushing Anders on his back. His breathing deepened, while Anders halted his for a moment, then exhaled sharply.

"Finally," he whispered.

"No more holding back," Lucanis smiled, starting to move. "Mathilda will no longer stand between us."

It was the first time that Lucanis took the lead. Until then he only accepted what Anders offered, remaining passive, as if preserving himself for someone else. And in fact he was - Mathilda was never far away from his thoughts. But during the night when Anders was lying unconscious in a bath of lukewarm water, Lucanis had the time to take a close look at his feelings.

When Mathilda got married over twenty five years ago, Lucanis thought that it closed a chapter in his life - that in which he loved Mathilda deeply and passionately, so deeply that he did not want to endanger her life by marrying her, and so he let her go. She accepted his sacrifice, not even asking him to reconsider. They haven't spoken since, and thus she remained in his memory exactly as she was the last time they spent the night together, in all her charm and beauty.

Mathilda's marriage did not bring her children but instead it brought her wealth and standing, and when her husband was eventually assassinated by the Crows, everyone thought she had been the contract giver. Everyone thought too that a wedding between her and Lucanis would take place immediately after the end of her mourning term... but it didn't happen. Lucanis watched Mathilda from the sidelines, still not even exchanging a word with her. No one dared to broach the topic with him, and after a while people stopped talking about it. Perhaps he didn't love her anymore.

Nothing could be further from the truth, however. Lucanis still loved Mathilda as passionately as ever, but the woman that came to him in his dreams was not the middle-aged widow of a rich nobleman - it was the woman from his youth. It wasn't the years or the grey in her hair that kept him back, it was her demeanour, her manner, her speech - everything that made up her outward personality seemed to have changed, and Lucanis feared that the inner core might have changed as well. He feared to discover that the woman he loved no longer existed.

Lucanis never meant to become involved with a man; what happened with Anders took him completely by surprise. He put it down to his unwillingness to accept any woman to replace Mathilda - Anders was not a woman, and thus posed no threat to his love. Anders was his accidental rescuer, having helped him to escape from the underwater prison. Anders was his healer and the man that stood between him and death, not letting him commit suicide by ripping up the stitches that he kept putting back in. Anders was insufferably stubborn and didn't think that being an abomination was such a big deal, having gone through it himself. Anders was emotional, impulsive, reckless and abrupt, and he'd never give up on him even if he had to bleed himself to death for that... Anders held nothing back. Anders was everything Lucanis was not.

The first time Lucanis kissed him, it was out of spite. He couldn't quite explain to himself how that figured, but that was what he felt. It was impulsive and reckless... but Anders was neither a target nor a client, so there was no need to hold back.

Anders always walked the edge... and that was where they met. Lucanis' passion was not reserved exclusively for Mathilda, he discovered. This blond blood mage took him to Ferelden, they met people with remarkably open views and attitudes... people that loved the other Antivan despite all the controversy around him, which was nothing compared to the controversy around themselves. Ferelden Grey Wardens outshone every tall tale that Lucanis had heard about them and didn't believe.

Anders fought darkspawn "like a bleeding Archdemon", as someone put it. Lucanis had never fought alongside Grey Wardens before and had hardly ever seen darkspawn. Facing it in great numbers for the first time took every bit of his courage just not to run away screaming. He then understood where Conscription Ale came from - that terror kept haunting his dreams, and that must have been nothing compared to facing an Archdemon in your sleep as every Grey Warden did... When Anders would wake up shaking in the middle of the night and take a long swig of his Conscription Ale, Lucanis only wondered how he could stand it. But Anders would shrug and smile, although rarely return to bed after such a dream.

Lucanis enjoyed toying with the idea of a gay relationship - it was all nonsense, he was not gay, and Anders was just a friend... They shared a bed, but nothing ever happened, apart from an occasional kiss which Lucanis could neither explain nor justify to himself. He wanted to kiss him and he did... that was it. Not questioning or analysing it was new to him but he didn't question or analyse that either.

Being a bait was new to Lucanis as well. Going to The Gay Vint with Anders, putting himself on display, making a show of it even, all with the hope of being led into a deadly trap... the audacity of it was exhilarating. And there, dancing the tango, Lucanis realised that he wanted more than an occasional kiss. He would let this mage come close... he would let him in. And when Zara lay dead, he did.

"And that is why you chose a man..." He recalled his grandmother's words later. A man was no replacement for Mathilda, his love was still safe.

"Teia felt it," Lucanis was thinking of the evening in Treviso. "She was urging me to speak to Mathilda again, to bring her back into my life... and I resisted. Perhaps I had already made up my mind by then..." He stroked Anders' hair pretending to himself to be checking his temperature. "Ridiculous," he smirked. "Whom am I fooling?"

His beautiful Anders, his emotional lover, impulsive, reckless and abrupt, was lying near-dead in a bath of lukewarm water... and there wasn't much else that Lucanis could do but to keep the water lukewarm...

...

Lucanis pulled out and rolled over to his side, taking Anders in a whole-body embrace.

"Did I hurt you? Why are you crying?" He kissed away the tears from Anders' face.

"I am happy," Anders smiled. "This is the first time..."

"I know... it took me long enough," Lucanis looked apologetic. "But Mathilda's ghost is now gone, it no longer rules over me..."

"I think Spite kicked it out," Anders laughed.

"Not Spite... you did. I love you. This is the real thing, the other love was but a memory..."

"Luca... No more suicides, promise me!" He looked him in the eye, growing serious. "I know what you did to my stitches, I am not that bad of a healer," he smirked. "If you want death... if you really want death... just ask."

"I made peace with my spirits, I no longer want death," Lucanis answered equally seriously. "And I must ask the same of you. If you wish to die in the snow, please tell me."

Anders smiled and kissed him in response.

"No," he shook his head. "But Amaya will be disappointed."

"Amaya? Who..?" Lucanis pulled back in surprise. "Oh... the girl at the Soldier's Peak," he recalled.

"Amaya is thirteen years old," Anders said angrily. "Yet she comes in making demands on me! Flattering at first, for sure, but come to think of it, what am I supposed to do? She has no claim on me!"

"No?" Lucanis was finding Anders' anger amusing. "You are surprised she has a crush on the one man who pulled her through every life-threatening crisis she can remember and a few she can't, including her very birth?"

"I am a healer, that's what I do," Anders looked confused. "I delivered so many children..."

"I know, and now you've got one with a crush on you," Lucanis said soothingly. "Why did you tell her to wait ten years? Surely, she will become a woman before she turns twenty three!"

"And I hope she won't wait for me to usher her into womanhood," Anders nodded. "That's why. I hope nature will proclaim itself and she will grow up as a normal teenager..."

"...and find herself someone else to love?" Lucanis finished his sentence. "But why, Anders? She's a lovely girl..."

"Amaya is a child," Anders shook his head. "I fear she will always remain a child to me. And anyhow, in ten years I shall be an old Warden ready to die in the Deep Roads, not take on a young wife! I could never give her children either... I mustn't, even if I could..."

"Because of the taint?"

"The Blight... yeah..."

Lucanis stroked his face and kissed him.

"You should tell her that," he said softly. "Without waiting ten years."

"You should have talked to Mathilda," Anders frowned.

"I should have," Lucanis agreed, surprising himself. "I have a feeling I shall have to, and not at a time of my choosing... but I know what to say. It's been too long, we've made our choices... she made her choices, too. And now I've made mine. I have a Warden to protect." He smiled and kissed him. "From the cold hiding inside the snow."

To their surprise, spirit wings appeared at Lucanis' back, wrapping around them like a cocoon.

[Renee]

There's a reason for that... Not saying anything else... Nope, nope...

Ha ha okay!

[Lena Wolf]

Morning Star, 3E411 - A double agent

When the following morning there was a knock on the door, neither Anders nor Lucanis were out of bed yet.

"Hmm?" Anders was still half asleep. "What time is it? Oh, come in!"

The door opened and shut quickly and Harding slipped into the room, making sure that no one saw her come in.

"Are you awake? I hope you're awake, it's awfully early!" She said in a hushed voice, approaching the bed. "Come on, wake up, it's important!"

"What's up, Lace?" Anders sat up. "You're all flustered... What's wrong?"

"Nothing yet..." Harding looked over her shoulder as if expecting someone to have slipped into the room after her. "But I've heard things... You should call Alistair in. It's time Ferelden Wardens made an appearance."

"This sounds serious, I'll make coffee," Lucanis decided, getting out of bed.

"Oh my..." Harding took a step back and grinned. "You're... not wearing much."

"So you get to see all my man parts," Lucanis grinned back. "But I must warn you - I'm already spoken for."

"Cut it out and tell us what's wrong," Anders frowned, also getting out of bed. "Come on now, you woke us up." Then, turning to Lucanis, he added: "Luca, make tea for Harding, she doesn't like coffee."

"Doesn't like coffee but rather enjoys seeing two men naked," Lucanis smirked. "At your service." He handed Harding a cup of tea which she accepted without taking her eyes off the two naked men before her.

"Now, speak!" Anders was getting cross, he hated being woken up early.

"Err... oh, right." Harding redressed herself. "Something is up. Varric is calling you names again."

"Scheisszwerg," Anders swore. "Is that all?"

"No... he's also suggesting you should be dismissed," Harding shifted in her seat uncomfortably. "That you cannot lead Grey Wardens. That Davrin should take over."

"Aha," Anders rubbed his face, trying to finally wake up. "So I'll just leave then, shall I? I never wanted to lead this mad party in the first place! But he insisted... what got into him now?"

"He's still sore after you called him that nickname in public," Harding looked up. "It is... well..."

"I know what it is, it's in my language!" Anders exploded. "Blöde Scheiße! I've had enough of him, I swear!"

"He says he's got a replacement for you..." Harding was watching Anders pace the room, the ink of his Grey Warden tattoos contrasting with his pale skin. "Is your ink glowing?" She suddenly asked.

"Yeah... I'm angry... my magic boils when I'm angry..." He turned to her abruptly. "What replacement?"

"I don't know," Harding said slowly. "But he's been saying that he found someone who knows how to find the remaining Archdemon and that Davrin could lead the Wardens to it."

"Neve," Lucanis hissed through his teeth.

"And how would she know it?" Anders stopped and took a deep breath, dimming the glow of his tattoos. "She is not a Grey Warden, and even we cannot locate it."

"May be she had help?" Harding suggested. "If Varric indeed means her, that is."

"The only person who can locate that Archdemon is Solas," Anders finally calmed down. "Besides the two elven gods, that is. And Solas hasn't been talking to me for a while now... of course, I haven't exactly gone out of my way to reach him..."

"If Solas is really Fen'Harel, he could have double-crossed you," Lucanis pointed out.

"Yeah... very likely," Anders agreed. "And he cannot leave his prison in the Fade, so he cannot turn up here himself... so he sends a proxy," Anders nodded. "That fits. But why does he want me dead?"

"Because you don't trust him, perhaps?" Harding offered. "He's sure to have his own plan with respect to those gods, and you are too unreliable for him."

"We should call Alistair, you're right," Anders sat down and picked up his coffee again. "It'll take them a week to get here... by that time the party should be in full swing." Then, turning to Lucanis, he called: "Spite! Determination! Show yourself."

A spirit copy of Lucanis materialised in the room and Harding shivered.

"I'll never get used to this..." she sighed. "Has he been listening in all the while? Why is he fully dressed?"

"Two naked men not enough for you, eh?" Lucanis smirked. "This is what I was wearing when Zara forced The Spirit of Determination into me. He got this as his human form. Not naked, sorry."

"I shall contact Avernus," Spite hissed. "He will call Alistair. And yes - Solas got Neve to intervene, she tried to kill you," he turned to Anders. "I was watching... you would not have died... but he didn't need my help..." he jerked his head towards Lucanis. "I try not to interfere... unless I have to..."

"Do you know where that Archdemon is?" Anders asked.

"No... Solas keeps me out... Solas is powerful but stuck at the moment. But still, he shields himself from other spirits..."

"Other spirits? Solas is a spirit???" Anders jumped up.

"Spirit and man both," Spite nodded. "Walks in the Fade, walks in Mundus. Ancient elves were like that... still are... the gods are like that..."

"And the Archdemon presumably also," Anders nodded. "In which case..." he smirked, realising something. "I know where it is. The Archdemon is in the Fade."

"That's a start," Harding smiled. "And how do we find that Archdemon in the Fade?"

"Umm... we follow Neve, perhaps?" He smiled slyly. "Bring darling Neve here, receive her with tea and cakes, let that Scheisszwerg make her the queen of the party... Let Davrin lead the Wardens... he won't see where he's going from behind his bloated ego..."

"You will need an agent in this forward party," Harding smiled.

"Indeed," Anders got up and started putting on clothes. "A double agent. Harding, you are with them. You hate and detest me, now that you've seen me naked... literally and figuratively, after that stunt in the snow..."

"I've seen you naked before though," Harding smirked. "But I get you. We want to know all there is to know... leave it to me."

"I hope Dorian is awake," Anders put his hand on the door handle. "I'll bring him here. I'm wanting sex again, see..." he winked. "That's my line. We need to find out who's with us and who is not."

"And the Wardens?" Lucanis looked up, also getting dressed.

"The Wardens don't really care. I am not a Commander, and neither is Davrin. The lead is temporary. The Wardens will follow whoever knows where they are going."

They nodded to each other and Anders left the room, followed by Harding shortly afterwards. The game was on.

...

Anders was making a show of himself. He was acting much more rowdy than usual, emphasizing his sexual desires and downplaying everything else. People who trusted him, believed it was an act; people who were looking for an excuse to berate him, got what they wanted. The Wardens sensed him better than non-Wardens and did not worry. He could be affected by the Blight or he could simply be drunk, both were common and deserved no further consideration. The first darkspawn appearing would set him straight again.

Neve appeared at the Keep a day later, having received an invitation from Varric who was leading the opposition. Neve claimed to know where the Archdemon was, and she would lead the Wardens to it. Davrin named himself Commander and ordered Anders to be locked up in the dungeons, but no one was going to do that. He was therefore left with glaring at Anders every time their paths crossed.

Dorian was spending his nights with Anders and Lucanis, and Anders made sure everyone knew why... in reality however they were preparing for action.

"Emmrich is with us," Dorian was saying. "He sees through your ruse, Anders," he smiled. "He also sees that Neve is acting on the orders of Solas, and he does not trust it. But Emmrich is not a spy - Varric doesn't trust him and so Emmrich cannot help us with information. But when the time for fighting comes, we shall be glad to have him on our side."

"Emmrich is a powerful mage, agreed," Anders nodded. "We've got a spy already... it's fine."

"Bellara is with Varric," Dorian continued. "Perhaps you should have worked harder on her when you had the chance," he smirked. "She has some potent magic, I'd rather not face her in battle."

"Are we going to fight them?" Lucanis looked up.

"I hope not," Anders sighed. "I hope this is just rivalry. After all, we all want the same thing - defeat the Blight."

"Yes, but Neve also wants to defeat Dorian," Lucanis pointed out. "With words, if not on the battlefield. That much is obvious."

"I wonder what Solas promised her... Hmm..." Dorian mused. "That she would be the one to usher Tevinter into a new era of prosperity? If she can prove that we didn't corrupt the Golden City but that ancient elves did it... That's every Venatori's dream. She would certainly get a seat at the Magisterium for it."

"She will not live to make use of it though," Lucanis said darkly. "I have a contract on her life and I intend to fulfill it. The only question is when."

"When we no longer need her," Anders touched his hand. "There is no rush, is there?"

"No rush," Lucanis nodded.

"So, who else have we got?" Anders went through a mental list of companions. "Taash. Taash is with Davrin, I presume."

"Taash?" Lucanis was surprised. "But she adores you!"

"She adores Harding a lot more, and Harding is with Davrin," Anders pointed out. "Taash will have figured it out, not saying anything. She will keep Davrin in check, and enjoy doing so."

"Antoine? Surely, he is with us," Lucanis realised that was the end of the list.

"He is, but not openly so," Anders nodded. "Antoine is mostly concerned for the well-being of the Wardens. They listen to him, too, rather more than to Davrin. He'll tug along with Davrin, but he is really with us."

"Another double agent," Dorian smiled. "Which leaves just the four of us to follow the forward group discreetly - we here and Emmrich."

"Three mages!" Lucanis shook his head. "I get saddled with three mages!"

"We'll do our best not to annoy," Dorian smirked.

"Alright, that's as much planning as we can possibly do," Anders got up, stretching. "It's the middle of the night... let's see if we can get a few hours sleep before the circus resumes tomorrow..."

...

"Wardens!" Neve was addressing a dozen Grey Wardens in battle attire. "Follow me, I shall lead you to the last remaining Archdemon! And together we'll slay it!"

"This will put an end to all Blights once and for all!" Davrin added enthusiastically but the Wardens didn't seem convinced.

"Well, actually, no, it won't end the Blights yet, but it is a necessary step to that goal!" Neve tried to correct him. "You've killed the first Archdemon," she addressed Grey Wardens again. "That made one escaped elven god mortal again. Now we have to do the same with the second. And then - on to the gods themselves! And that will end all Blights."

"Do you know where to find the gods?" Someone asked from the back of the room.

"Not yet..." Neve shuffled her feet. "But I'm sure I will, later!"

"Hmm..."

"The second Archdemon needs to die, it's clear, is it not?" Antoine spoke from amidst Grey Wardens. "So we can go and do it. Then we'll see."

"Be happy Antoine is backing you up for now," Varric said quietly to Neve. "He won't for long, but for now he's with you. Use it."

Neve nodded and smiled her most engaging and brilliant smile.

"Let's go, Wardens!" She spoke in an upbeat voice. "After the Archdemon! Into the Fade itself!"

That was the first time she mentioned that the Archdemon was in the Fade. Uncomfortable noises went through the Wardens, and if it wasn't for Antoine, they would have flatly turned around and marched off. But Antoine said something to one of them, and something else to another, and glances were thrown into the far corner where Anders stood with Dorian, Lucanis and Emmrich... Then the Wardens finally turned to Neve and Davrin again, nodding their agreement. Perhaps they saw the situation much clearer than Neve would have liked.

They set off. The way to the Fade was free, thanks to Anders' efforts in removing blighted boils previously. The Wardens hadn't seen it done because Anders had kept them back, but they could see what carnage took place there in the heaps of dead darkspawn covering the ground.

The transition into the Fade was subtle, and only mages noticed that the realm had changed. After some time also non-mages realised they were in the Fade - it made their skin crawl. Yet the place was peaceful with nothing attacking them, but everyone was on edge.

The Archdemon was resting on a large rock. It was nothing but a dragon asleep, a darkspawn dragon perhaps, but just a dragon... Taash readied her axes and everyone tensed, then Neve attacked.

The battle was as ferocious as could be expected - it was a fierce dragon imbued with some unknown Blight magic giving it far more endurance and power than anyone thought possible. Many Wardens fell before their combined efforts finally got the Archdemon down and dead. But, like with the first Archdemon, the death of this dragon did not claim a Warden's life. This Blight was different, the dragon's spirit was seen to rise from its body and drift away and out of sight. Everyone thought it was reunited with the elven god to whom it belonged.

Neve wanted to return to the Keep with all haste, but the Wardens insisted on carrying their dead comrades back with them, not wishing to leave them in the Fade.

"It's alright to die in the Deep Roads, that's what Wardens do," one of them explained to Neve. "But this is the Fade. There is no knowing what will happen to their bodies here, and it is our duty to return them to Mundus. We'll bury them there."

Neve tried to object but her arguments weren't listened to.

Anders and his companions followed Neve's group a short distance behind, not hiding at all. Their intentions had been clear from the start, and it didn't seem that Neve was bothered by that. Varric glared at them a few times but said nothing either. They joined the battle and were glad to realise that no one was trying to fight them but was focusing on the dragon; and when the battle was done, no one prevented Anders from trying to help anyone still alive. Neve didn't bring any other healers.

Back at the Keep the tension coming from Neve, Varric and Davrin was palpable. Taash was following Davrin everywhere, not taking her eyes off him or her hand off the hilt of her axe. Harding vanished, Antoine mixed among the Wardens attending to the dead; Anders joined the other healers attending to the living. It was a truce, that much was clear. But for how long? And what would be the next step? A few people knew, a few more guessed, and the majority were too tired to care. An Archdemon was slain that day, that was enough.

[Lena Wolf]

Morning Star, 3E411 - Life in death

"Get him out of here," Evka said to Lucanis. "His wrists don't stop bleeding and I don't think there's any blood left in him to give away. And yet he won't stop."

"There are still people needing his help," Lucanis watched Anders slit his wrist again converting his blood into healing magic. "He will keep going until he collapses..."

"My point exactly," Evka nodded. "Get him out of here."

...

"But I still have patients waiting!" Anders was protesting but Lucanis put his arm around his shoulders and firmly led him away.

"Give the other healers a chance to be useful too," he joked.

"This Blight is different - the wounds don't heal properly!" Anders was saying with worry. "And that includes my wrists..."

"Which is why you should stop cutting yourself for today," Lucanis opened the door to their room, ushered Anders in and closed the door behind them. "I shall not insist that you eat now, I think sleep is more important. Let's get you to bed."

Anders didn't need convincing - he was collapsing. Lucanis caught him and put him on the bed.

"Gone too far again," he shook his head.

"Eh? No, I'm not dead yet," Anders came to. "But yeah... tired." He undressed and got into bed. "Join me."

It was late and they'd had a long and hard day, and Lucanis too was tired. As soon as he got into bed, Anders kissed him passionately.

"I thought you were tired," Lucanis was surprised. "I know I am."

"And I need you to rise above it. Hurt me."

"WHAT?!"

"Hurt me," Anders repeated. "Put your gentle manner aside and hurt me."

"What are you asking? Why?" Lucanis lost all sleepiness, this was more than strange.

"When I was a healer in Kirkwall," Anders looked serious. "I didn't do it for money. My patients couldn't pay and I never asked. You know what I did to earn some coin..." He gave Lucanis a long look and Lucanis nodded. "Well... it was then that I discovered that one pain can heal another. My wrists..."

"You want me to make you bleed elsewhere in order to heal your wrists?!" Lucanis shook his head vigorously.

"Precisely," Anders smiled.

"No," Lucanis said firmly. "I won't do it. I love you, I am not one of those men. There are other ways, Linus," he said softly. "Now we sleep, and in the morning I'll make you the largest omelette you've ever seen, I think we even have ham in the kitchen..." He stopped talking, realising that Anders passed out again. His wrists were still bleeding, if only slightly. This Blight was not like the others.

...

The following morning Lucanis insisted that Anders should refrain from healing for a day and actually eat that large omelette that he had promised him the night before. They didn't mention the other part of their conversation as if it never happened, but they both knew that of course it did.

In the afternoon a young Warden whom Anders had never seen before, came running to the Keep.

"Anders! Warden Anders!" He called. "Oh, there you are... Alistair wants you at the Head Quarters straight away," he delivered his message in a rush. "We just got here from Ferelden... yeah, I'm a recent recruit... you don't know me but I sure know you..." He had to stop talking to catch his breath. "Anyway... no, it's not an emergency," he shook his head, seeing a question in Anders' eyes. "But still, please come immediately. It's important."

"That's just as well," Lucanis nodded. "Neve still doesn't know what to do next and the Wardens here need to heal. Come on, I am sure Harding will send a message if anything changes," he added in a hushed voice.

...

When they arrived at the Head Quarters, they found a sizeable group of Ferelden Wardens making themselves at home in the dormitories, and Anders instantly felt at ease with so many familiar faces around. He went looking for Alistair whom he found in conversation with Roderik, the one Warden staying at the Head Quarters who could still walk.

"There have been strange sightings," Roderik was saying. "It's darkspawn but it's different. Deliberate, intelligent even - nothing like what we've seen before."

"Does that sound familiar?" Alistair turned to Anders. "You were with Wolf when you discovered this new kind of intelligent darkspawn just after the last Blight..."

"Yes, but what Roderik is describing, is even more intelligent than that..." Anders shook his head. "Who reported the sightings?"

"He died this morning," Roderik looked down. "An old Warden, he had gone to the Deep Roads... he'd had plenty of fights and was badly wounded, but then he found this new darkspawn and instead of pressing on and seeking relief in battle, he turned back and came here to warn us... but his wounds got him in the end."

"Peace be with him now," Anders said softly. "But we must act on this. He thought it was important, we should go and see."

"And you've got Roderik's map with Deep Roads entrances," Alistair pointed out. "Are you fit to fight? You look rather... err... under the weather." Alistair tried to be diplomatic and everyone smiled at his failed attempt.

"He has been doing too much healing," Lucanis jacked one of Anders' sleeves. The cuts were still raw, although the bleeding finally stopped.

"The wounds don't heal very well," Avernus walked up to them. "These cuts are from yesterday, yes? They should have been covered over, ready to resume... but you're not ready by any stretch of imagination..." He stopped talking as Anders glared. "Oh my boy, remember who put you back together time and time again..." Avernus smiled. "This reminds me of why you became a Warden. No magic and no potion could stop the taint from spreading... Nothing except the Joining Cup."

"Becoming a Warden is not a cure," Anders shook his head.

"No, but an Archdemon's blood that is a part of the mixture, does appear to be different from plain darkspawn blood. It gives you life, even if ultimately it kills you."

"Well, we did fight an Archdemon..." Anders rubbed his chin. "We all got its blood sprayed onto us, I am sure... But what does this mean?"

"That it is reacting to the Archdemon's blood that you had ingested during the Joining? And that they are at odds with each other?" Avernus looked at Anders searching. "I couldn't really tell..."

"We should investigate," Anders concluded. "Who's with me?"

...

No, they could not persuade him to stay behind. The best they could do was make him promise to forego blood magic and give his wrists a rest even at the expense of the power of his spells. Lucanis looked grim and resigned to stay close, vividly remembering the conversation from the night before. This new pain was not going to heal the pain that Anders already carried.

They noted several entrances to the Deep Roads on Roderik's map and decided to head for the one closest to the old Grey Wardens Vault. That area was remarkably free of blighted boils which, according to Anders, did not bode well. Non-Wardens could not see the logic of that, but Wardens all nodded in agreement. The absence of blighted boils meant that even more powerful darkspawn was holding that area.

"Plus, we've never actually gone to the Vaults themselves," Anders pointed out. "We got side-tracked by those boils!"

They assembled a group of half a dozen Wardens in addition to Dorian, Emmrich and Lucanis who did not let anyone to talk them out of going. If Anders was not allowed to use blood magic, he needed other mages with him to make sure his wrists remained uncut. It was already late afternoon, but it would be dark in the caverns at any time of day, and everyone was too high strung to sleep anyway. They set off without delay.

They reached the Vaults without any noteworthy resistance and dismantled the traps guarding the gates. Anders was shaking his head in disbelief - those traps weren't that hard to remove, how could Grey Wardens Vaults be only protected by something as flimsy as that? The answer was waiting for them as soon as they pushed the old doors open - they faced a fully grown griffon poised to kill them.

The Wardens froze, Anders included. Grey Wardens did not fight griffons. On the contrary, griffons had been Grey Wardens' allies since the beginning of the Blight, they had a natural ability to sense darkspawn and they slayed it ferociously. Unfortunately, griffons had all but died out after the Fourth Blight, and no one knew exactly why. There were still a few of them in the wilds of the Anderfels here and there, but only a few and they were no longer serving in Grey Warden ranks. The griffon facing them however was digging in aggressively, ready to attack.

"Wardens!" A hoarse yet clear voice was heard in the fortress, undoubtedly magically amplified. "Welcome, Wardens! Welcome home! Come join us in our eternal vigil at this old fort!"

The Wardens snapped out of their shock and exchanged glances, everyone waiting for Anders to act.

"Who are you?" Anders asked, looking around. The griffon was still angrily flapping its wings but did not attack.

"I have been the Keeper of these Vaults since the Fourth Blight," the voice replied. "You have nothing to fear. Come and join us!"

If it was a trap, it certainly was impressively authentic. A Keeper of the Vaults since the Fourth Blight? But the Fourth Blight was over four hundred years ago... even Avernus wasn't that old.

"Are you a spirit?" Anders asked, walking slowly and looking at huge cabinets lining the walls. Some had solid doors but others were only blocked off by bars. Strange artefacts were seen there, and many, many bones. Something about those bones was familiar... the shape, the size...

"These are bones of old Archdemons," someone realised. "The marrow is used in the Joining Cup... it's as good as blood."

"A nearly unlimited supply of Archdemon blood for the Joining," another Warden nodded.

"I am not a spirit!" The voice answered Anders' question. "I am a Grey Warden!"

They pushed the doors at the other end of the hall and entered a vast cavern, and there in the fog they saw the Head Quarters fortress, completely intact.

"Well, I didn't expect to find this here," Lucanis said what everyone thought. "How is this possible?"

"Wardens! Welcome home!" The voice said again and several figures stepped out of the fog. As they approached, Grey Warden crests on their armour became visible, yet with every step they took, the Wardens that were with Anders, grew more and more restless.

"Darkspawn!" One of them said in a worried voice. "These are not Wardens, this is darkspawn!"

"Wardens! Join us!" The voice spoke again. "You are tainted by the same Blight as we are! We have drunk your blood as you drink ours! Join us in our eternal vigil!"

"Darkspawn impersonating Grey Wardens?" Avernus shook his head in disbelief. "If someone had told me about this, I'd have thought they went mad..."

"We are not impersonating Grey Wardens, Avernus!" The voice sounded slightly hurt. "We are Grey Wardens! But I shall forgive you this misunderstanding. Ever since the Fourth Blight we have been gathering here, building the Head Quarters fortress so we'd have a place to call home... We are Grey Wardens who refused to die in the Deep Roads, for Blight is life! The song carries us forth!"

"This is more than a little confusing..." Dorian shuddered. "What do we do, Anders?"

While they were talking, several blighted Wardens approached them from the fog. They still looked mostly human, but their skin was completely blighted and their eyes had the same red glow that is often seen in actual darkspawn. Yet they were alive... They stood there, as if waiting for a command.

"This is darkspawn!" Anders proclaimed loudly. "We fight!" He attacked the nearest blighted Warden, and all the others attacked too, it was a fight of Warden against Warden, the worst kind one could imagine.

"You made the wrong choice, Wardens!" The voice shouted angrily. "Your lives end here!"

The battle was nothing short of overwhelming. The blighted Wardens were fewer in number, but they were stronger and more resilient than the living Wardens, easily winning even when outnumbered. Several Ferelden Wardens fell, but the others redoubled their efforts and evened out the odds, yet the losses were felt keenly. The battle was not going well.

"I have to help, I need power!" Anders took out his dagger and rolled up his sleeve.

"No, we need you tomorrow as well as today!" Emmrich quickly snatched his dagger and threw it away. "Leave it to me."

He started incanting a complex spell, with magical energy lighting up the fog around him. He raised his arms and several dead Wardens rose from the ground and joined the fight.

"What?!" Someone noticed what he did. "A necromancer!!!"

But the battle was too hot to consider moral implications of this. Raised Wardens fought well under Emmrich's control and together with the living, they finally defeated the blighted Wardens.

"You raised our fallen comrades!" One of the Wardens flew at Emmrich in anger. "Necromancer!!!"

"Err... yes... I am a necromancer..." Emmrich seemed genuinely surprised. "Of the Mourn Watch in Nevarra... oh... I see... I haven't considered..."

"He meant no disrespect!" Dorian stepped between the angry Warden and Emmrich. "He is Nevarran. It is their tradition. It is considered an honour to reanimate a fallen warrior like that!"

"And we did finally win," Anders joined in. "Without our fallen friends joining us again, that would not have been possible!"

Emotions ran high and it took Dorian and Anders all their persuasive powers to avoid another battle then and there. Eventually the Wardens cooled off.

"You have to promise us that their spirits were not affected!" They demanded.

"Of course they are not affected!" Emmrich rolled his eyes. "Their spirits have already departed! All I've done is reanimate their remains, they are nothing but bodies, flesh, they are no longer your friends! It is a really barbaric tradition to burn perfectly good bodies, they can be reused for..."

"Don't push it," Dorian cut him off. "These Wardens are Ferelden. They cremate their dead. Reanimating dead bodies is considered a desecration in their tradition... in everyone's tradition, except Nevarran, in fact..."

"He must promise to never raise Wardens again!" Someone shouted and everyone joined in.

"Oh alright, I promise!" Emmrich gave in. "But am I allowed to raise fallen darkspawn at least?"

"Darkspawn you can raise," the Wardens agreed. "As long as it's away from us!"

With the tensions thus calmed, it was time to take a closer look at the blighted Wardens that they had defeated. Were they darkspawn or were they really old Wardens twisted and consumed by the Blight? And just how old were they?

[Renee]

Hauk is in Hatmandor, Two Worlds II, this is. One of these days, Lena... I'll play me some Two Worlds.

Whoa, the Captain immediately wants Hauk on a job. That was quick. Medieval life was such a different world, even outside of High Fantasy.

Reesa seems shady. It's like she already knows about this package he's got. Uh oh...

http://chorrol.com/forums/index.php?s=&...st&p=341045

[Lena Wolf]

Well, Reesa knows everything. She's got the boss' ear... as well as other parts... She's very... talented. But you'll see. That's one heck of a gal.

[Lena Wolf]

Morning Star, 3E411 - Wardens of old

"I can't tell what we're looking at," Anders shook his head, having examined a corpse of a blighted Warden that they just defeated. "He's completely consumed by the Blight. He was human once, he was born a human, he wasn't produced by a broodmother."

"Agreed," Avernus nodded. "He is not first degree darkspawn... But I've never seen humans so badly consumed... Isn't he supposed to be dead?"

"We don't know," Anders said slowly, getting up from the ground. "I treated a lot of blighted people, humans and elves both, even some quanari. They all get so much pain that they either want to die or join Grey Wardens. I haven't seen anyone who chose to live like this..." He sighed. "I have never seen anyone try."

"I can attest to the pain," Avernus smirked. "Although my taint is no where near as advanced as this, or as advanced as the people you are talking about. Yes, yes, I know, I am over three hundred years old... ageing slowed and flesh preserved by magical means... and I hear the song loud and clear, it is really getting on my nerves now. But apart from that... I wonder..." He paused and rubbed his chin. "Walk with me," he said to Anders in a hushed voice.

They walked far enough to be out of earshot of the others, in particularly the other Wardens. What Avernus had to say would have been a shock, and he didn't think they needed to hear it then and there.

"Of course, I am a Grey Warden and not just a blighted person like those you treated," he said. "I had ingested Archdemon's blood during the Joining. I believe that is the key. That is why I am alive. The magic I used to slow down ageing, is nothing special. Just common rejuvenation spells. But I did research into our taint, I made some extracts, some elixirs, I tested a lot of that on myself... The final result was a success, you know of it, Wolf drank it and it gave him powers exactly because he too had Archdemon's blood in him. I was ready to prepare more but no one else wants to drink it... One Joining Cup is enough, they say," he smirked.

"So what you are saying is that these are in fact Grey Wardens," Anders looked at the corpses of the blighted Wardens. "But without your elixirs."

"Yes," Avernus nodded. "If I hadn't been drinking those mixtures all these years, I would have looked like them, I reckon... But I cannot be certain I would have been alive. Grey Wardens are not immortal."

"The Keeper said they drank our blood," Anders suddenly remembered something that didn't make sense. "Grey Warden blood... It's not an elixir of course, but..."

"It could have countered the Blight," Avernus nodded. "I mean, they are blighted beyond recognition, and yet they function, they speak, they act with deliberation... all those things that darkspawn cannot do."

"And they are darkspawn through and through," Anders rubbed his forehead. "I just can't get my head around it. We all sense them - they are darkspawn."

"But what is darkspawn, really?" Avernus squinted. "They are beings with severely tainted blood. It's the same taint as ours, there's just more of it. So what we sense in these blighted Wardens, is the level of their taint. We cannot actually sense whether they are first degree darkspawn or whether they were born human."

"May be we should not have fought them then..." Anders looked uneasy.

"No, we should have," Avernus said firmly. "I agree with your decision. They are darkspawn. Grey Wardens eliminate darkspawn. They are Grey Wardens no longer, they serve the Blight."

"Who is this Keeper, I wonder?" Anders thought of the voice they've heard. "A mage? Seems likely. A mage Grey Warden from the Fourth Blight... And what's with the fully grown griffon? There was something odd about it..."

"Ah, you noticed," Avernus smiled. "Of course we hardly ever see fully grown griffons since we don't keep them in our ranks. Those few hatchlings that we sometimes keep... they are released when they grow up. It's a symbol now rather than an ally."

"Yes, I noticed something odd about that griffon, and I don't mean the fact that it was an adult specimen," Anders returned to the matter at hand. "What do you think that was?"

"It is blighted."

"I didn't want to believe it... but I thought so too," Anders nodded.

"It was blighted deliberately," Avernus added gravely. "Griffons are immune to the taint. They can fight darkspawn, they can eat darkspawn flesh and not become blighted as humans would be. But Archdemon's blood is different... I reckon someone injected Archdemon's blood directly into the griffon's veins..."

"But with what purpose..?" Anders looked baffled.

"To make it stronger," Avernus looked up. "Blighted Wardens are much stronger now than they've been when they were still human. The griffon must be the same."

"We've got to find the Keeper," Anders said decisively. "Try to reason with him... her... I could not tell by the voice..."

"The Keeper might fight us," Avernus looked concerned. "There are likely more blighted Wardens around. Possibly more griffons. And if the Keeper commands them to fight..."

"We'll die here," Anders nodded. "But do you have a better idea?"

"Don't go all at once?" Avernus smiled. "Let me go. I am already old. If I die... I've written down everything worth knowing, my notes are in the tower at Soldier's Peak... you know, that big cupboard behind the desk..."

"Stop that, Avernus!" Anders shook his head vigorously. "We both go. The rest must stay back. I'll tell Dorian."

"Lucanis won't stay behind."

"Lucanis... he must. I promised his grandmother he would survive. This is too dangerous."

"I think you don't know Lucanis very well if you think he'll agree," Avernus grinned.

"Agree to what?" Lucanis caught the end of the phrase as Anders and Avernus rejoined the others.

"Avernus and I will go into this replica Head Quarters Fortress in search of the Keeper. Everyone else, including you, must stay behind. If we don't return within a few hours..."

"Out of the question!" Lucanis and Dorian said in unison. "You are not going alone."

"We must find the Keeper," Anders looked at them in turn. "The Keeper is bound to be very powerful, and there likely to be more blighted Wardens there, we will not be able to defeat them if they choose to fight, not even with Emmrich's necromancy. We will all die there. This cannot be permitted. So... in case the Keeper does not want to talk... Avernus and I will go, and if we die, then only two of us will be dead. The rest of you must return to Alistair and he will carry on. Dorian, you are to lead the party back if we do not return."

"I cannot let you go without me, you know that," Lucanis said softly, taking Anders aside. "You need me. You need Spite."

"I promised your grandmother you would survive. You cannot go," Anders shook his head.

"Caterina... she will understand," Lucanis sighed. "The point is however that with me around we both might survive."

Avernus was right, Lucanis was not going to stay behind. Anders sighed but had to accept the inevitable. He told Dorian everything they discovered and explained why they needed to find the Keeper. The other Wardens didn't insist on learning every detail, most of them already guessed what it was. They were tired after the battle, they grieved their fallen comrades and the Blight song was too loud in their heads... bad news could wait until they were back. And so, Anders, Avernus and Lucanis entered the replica Head Quarters fortress in search of the Keeper.

...

"This is incredible," Anders was wandering through the halls as no one stopped them yet. "This building is exactly like the original... oh look - the dungeons."

"Why do Grey Wardens even need dungeons in their own fortress?" Lucanis was looking into the cells noting that they appeared to have seen some use. "I mean, whom are you locking up?"

"Well, the First Warden wanted to have me locked up..." Anders grinned. "But normally it's just used for those Wardens who are too drunk and rowdy to stay at the dorms... We don't actually take prisoners," he winked.

"You can't have a fortress without a dungeon, and so this one also has it," Avernus dismissed the topic. "I am more interested in why we have so far not been challenged."

"There's movement in the building and I sense darkspawn, so I assume it's more blighted Wardens," Anders nodded. "But they are staying out of sight. Hmm. Let's try the central courtyard."

They walked out onto a large square courtyard completely enclosed by the walls of the fortress. An adult griffon was relaxing in the middle of it, and a strange being was stroking its feathers.

"Welcome, Wardens, I am the Keeper," the being said. Looking closely, they realised that it was a human or an elf completely consumed by the Blight. It was but a skeleton covered in dry and withered skin; it wore a very old and frayed robe that turned into strips from decay. The being's head was crowned in somehing that looked like a support rather than a decorative piece. It seemed to have completely fused with the skull. Yet the being moved with fluidity and ease that were surprising in a skeleton, and its eyes were not just red with the Blight, they were glowing. This being was clearly a mage.

"We fought your Wardens just now, and yet you welcome us again?" Avernus spoke. "Who are you? Who were you, perhaps, before the Blight took over? You are completely consumed!"

"I welcome you because I believe the fight was but a misunderstanding," the Keeper replied. "I am... I was a Grey Warden, like you. I served during the Fourth Blight, my name is Ishala."

"Ishala? The mage? The elven mage in charge of the griffons?" Avernus looked up. "There are records... you were supposed to be dead..."

"As all the other Wardens here," Ishala nodded. "But the Blight gave us life."

"Giving in to the Blight... that's the opposite of what we stand for," Anders said quietly. "What happened?"

"What happened?" Ishala gave a short laugh. "Oh, I believe there are no records of that! Or at least not for everyone's eyes... the archives... you have to search the archives... they are still intact, yes? There are many records there that you have never seen." Ishala turned away from them for a few moments, stroking the feathers of the griffon again. "I had to stay alive. I had to take care of the griffons. It is our fault that they are extinct."

"Not completely, but close," Anders nodded. "We take hatchlings sometimes... then release them when they mature."

"I hid the eggs... then took them to the most remote corners of the Anderfels... I hoped the griffons would survive. It seems they did," she looked at them with an expression that resembled a smile. "During the Fourth Blight... I blighted the griffons."

"What?!" Anders nearly jumped but Avernus kept him back.

"It was an order," Ishala continued. "We were losing to the Blight... We lost many battles, many Wardens, many griffons... The Blight was exceptionally strong... The Archdemon... was invincible..." She shook her head. "Not really invincible of course, but too powerful for the likes of us. And we had griffons! I commend you for having defeated the Fifth Blight without griffons... and with problems, too, I hear..."

"Wolf and Alistair defeated the Blight," Anders nodded, calming down. "Gathered allies from all over Thedas... Just two Wardens..."

"Incredible," Ishala agreed. "But here you see what can be done with determination. And in my time the First Warden gave the order to blight the griffons so as to make them stronger. He did not see another way. I disagreed, I protested, it was so very wrong... But Grey Wardens will do anything and everything in order to defeat the Blight, and everything else we tried up to that point, had failed..." She sighed and shook her head. "And then I obeyed the order. I injected Archdemon blood into the veins of every griffon in our ranks. It helped - we defeated the Blight. And then the troubles began."

"The griffons went mad hearing the song," Avernus said softly. "They turned on the Wardens."

"Yes," Ishala looked at him. "Have you read about this?"

"No, I guessed."

"We had to kill each and every griffon." Ishala turned towards the griffon again, stroking its feathers and it looked at her and put its head under her hand.

"But this griffon..?" Anders was looking into its eyes, seeing the Blight staring back at him.

"I saved some," Ishala said quietly. "Not all of them went mad, the Blight progressed at different rates... I was too late for most of them... but I worked out how to calm them in the end. But of course they could not be released."

"Grey Warden blood?" Avernus too was looking at the griffon. "Counter taint with taint?"

"Exactly," Ishala nodded. "You've done something like that as well, Avernus," she turned to him. "I know of your research. We... have agents."

"Darkspawn?" Anders gave her a long look. "Darkspawn that can talk and reason?"

"But what is darkspawn?" Ishala pinned him with her piercing gaze. "I am darkspawn by your definition. This griffon is darkspawn. My Wardens are darkspawn too. So what of the first degree darkspawn who changed? You met some... are they all that different from you and me?"

"There is a difference," Anders said firmly. "I can feel it in my bones."

"The song has not overwhelmed him yet," Avernus turned to Ishala. "I, on the other hand, am so much closer to it... I hear the Call of the Black City... I hear but I do not obey."

"That is why Wardens are meant to die in the Deep Roads when the song is getting loud," Ishala nodded. "In order to make sure they do not submit to the song. Because blighted Wardens serve the Blight, they are Grey Wardens no longer..."

"You know all this, you understand all this..." Lucanis spoke in a hissing voice and Anders wasn't sure whether it was Lucanis or Spite speaking. "And yet you continue serving the Blight."

"But what is the alternative?" Ishala turned to him. "What will become of my griffons if I were to die?"

No one had an answer to that. Perhaps that question did not have a suitable answer.

"There is a Blight on - the Sixth Blight," Anders suddenly changed the topic. "I expect you know. Two old elven gods have escaped from their prison in the Fade and aim to destroy the world. One of those gods allegedly invented the Blight. We have to kill them."

"Yes, her return is the reason for the rise of this Blight," Ishala nodded. "But she is no longer in charge... She can alter it but she no longer controls it. The Blight is like a disease... it exists all of itself. But you know that, I suppose. You've killed the Archdemons, and you will kill those gods, but the Blight won't stop. Grey Wardens will be needed forever more."

"We will leave you be," Avernus took another look at the resting griffon. "We shall leave and close the Vaults. You will not be disturbed again."

"But I am a Grey Warden still," Ishala said firmly. "Or rather, I still remember what it was like being a Grey Warden. I shall help you. Defeating the Blight is what we do. When these two gods are slain, the Blight will retreat again, it will search for a new leader, a new Archdemon. You have to suppress it this time like every other time before." She looked at them with fiery, glowing eyes. "I know where to find the goddess. But the other one..."

"The other one is connected to Fen'Harel," Spite materialised among them. "Only Fen'Harel knows where he is."

They kept talking for a while longer, discussing strategies to use against the goddess, against the new Blight that rose since she returned. And then Anders, Avernus and Lucanis bid Ishala and her griffon goodbye and left their fortress, leading away the rest of their party. The Grey Warden Vaults would be sealed again, for the artefacts they contained were to be left undisturbed forever more.

"The goddess of the Blight is next," Alistair nodded when they told him what transpired. "Do you want to get the Wardens from the Keep? I'm sure they'll come running, Neve has no say in these matters."

"No, leave them be, I think," Anders shook his head. "Leave them alive. After the goddess, we still have two more elven gods to defeat."

"Two?" Dorian looked up. "Oh..."

"Solas is not walking away from this either," Anders nodded. "The fight is only just beginning."


~~~~~~~~

This post has been edited by Lena Wolf: Feb 7 2025, 01:54 AM

[Renee]

Cool, Lena is back with Hauk again. I see, so Hauk was telling a story that whole time, ha ha, guess I missed that!

They're looking for an artefact in the basement of some dwelling. Where are they? Says a friendly inn. Whoa, she's not going in the crack in the wall?? Why not?

"Oh why not?" Hauk agrees.

[censored], that's right, she's carrying. Pregnant. Plus, she spoke to Sithis.

topping up her goblet with the better Tamika wine

Tamika's > Surilies in this fiction, I see. 🍷 Everyone thinks different, right? I once had a character who even preferred Cheap Wine! Anyway, she's getting married to Lucien, as well. Lots of events on the horizon.

"I'll be around for as long as you want me, I am not backing away, but I am not your man

Interesting.

[Lena Wolf]

topping up her goblet with the better Tamika wine

Tamika's > Surilies in this fiction, I see. 🍷 Everyone thinks different, right? I once had a character who even preferred Cheap Wine!

There's no accounting for taste. However, Tamika is better than Surilies also in the game - just check the stats and the price!

"I'll be around for as long as you want me, I am not backing away, but I am not your man

Interesting.

She chose Lucien. Therefore Hauk is not her man. Simple male logic.

[Lena Wolf]

Morning Star, 3E411 - The goddess

"Ishala said that the goddess made herself a home in the first section of the Deep Roads just to the West of the Vaults," Anders was pointing at a spot on Roderik's map. "It is a large cavern, not unlike the one where they built that replica fortress. The goddess is apparently working on the Blight again."

"Not surprising," Alistair nodded. "She probably has a laboratory and she certainly has a lot of darkspawn."

"Blighted boils, I reckon," Anders nodded.

"Remember what those blighted boils could do to you," Lucanis looked at Anders and Dorian. "They can control mages. Last time all of you were taken to the Fade."

"Last time we were asleep," Emmrich spoke up. "But yes, the danger is clearly present. They may not knock us out immediately, but it will be a bother..."

"We'll need a warrior next to every mage," Anders decided. "Don't stray too far... we're in your hands."

"But what do we do if you get knocked out?" One of the Wardens looked unsure. "How do we stop the influence of the Blight?"

"Err... I don't know," Anders had to admit. "Improvise. Call someone if you're unsure..."

"Who helped you last time?" The Warden squinted.

"Last time..." Anders shot a glance at Lucanis, it was his story and Anders didn't want to be the one telling it.

"Last time I used Spite to go into the Fade to fight the Blight there," Lucanis said somewhat uneasily. "Spite is my... demon."

"Ah." The Warden sighed. "Don't stray too far from the mages then, Demon of Vyrantium, in case we need your help..."

They didn't say it, but everyone understood that "call someone" really meant find Lucanis and have him go into the Fade to rescue the mages again. Which also meant that they could not fully count on their master assassin - Lucanis could not be in two places at once.

"Let's hope the mages will remain conscious this time," Alistair concluded. "We set off tomorrow morning. Until then, we rest."

...

It was still late morning but Alistair wanted his Wardens to be well rested and well prepared. Cooking and eating was on the agenda for the rest of the day, without excessive drinking, to Oghren's disgust. At first people were tense, but after a while they started relaxing, after all, it was not their first campaign, even if going after a goddess would come very close to going after an Archdemon... but this wasn't to be the final battle, and everyone had to try not just to win, but also to survive. "No sacrifices," Alistair made it very clear. "If you are getting overwhelmed, retreat and find another way. We've got two more gods to defeat after this one, and I want all of you alive... Well, as many of you as possible," he sighed.

Anders went to talk to the three old Wardens that were staying at the fortress - Roderik, Markus and Linus. Roderik was the only one who could still walk.

"It won't be easy but I want you to bring the head of that goddess back here, I want to see her face!" Markus sat up on his cot. "It is her fault that I can't walk! I got this wound when she came crushing onto this very fortress!"

"She's got an ugly face, I've seen her last time," Linus smirked. "Tentacles growing out of her body. She is no longer a woman, no longer an elf."

"Be careful though... but I don't need to tell you, you were there," Roderik gave Anders a long look. "She is not to be taken lightly."

"Oh, we are not taking her lightly," Anders nodded. "It will be a massacre... which is why Alistair's been drilling into everyone that they must try to survive."

They were talking about the upcoming battle and about the one that raged in their Head Quarters a few months ago, and after a while the three old Wardens started slipping into their native Anderfels tongue, and somehow Anders kept up, without even realising it...

"You no longer speak Ander, do you?" Roderik switched back to the common tongue. "But you seem to understand us alright."

"I was taken to Ferelden when I was but seven," Anders shook his head. "I remember some words... but speaking... no... I've lost it, I fear."

"A few months among your people and it'll come back to you," Markus smiled. "When the Blight is done..."

"Don't bother with Hossberg," Linus interrupted. "It's a city for the rich, no different to any other. Kassel is better... or else try Tallo or Laysh."

"The ports!" Roderik laughed. "If you want to get to know the Anderfels, go inland! Leave the ports to the sailors!"

"You're only saying that because you're from Nordbotten," Linus shook his head, also laughing. "And here you have it, Anders... just travel the land... where it's not too blighted." He looked up watching Lucanis enter the room with a heavily laden tray. "Take your Crow with you... it'll be an adventure."

"Ah, the man who can cook!" Markus looked over the tray enthusiastically. "You made the right choice, Anders!" He added, tucking in.

"I wasn't the only one cooking today," Lucanis smiled. "I picked a bit of everything here for you, seeing how you can't easily get down to the kitchen..."

"Easily..." Linus smirked. "Nicely put..." He picked a few pieces and started eating, then suddenly went pale and fell back onto his cot. Anders was at his side in one jump, dagger in his hand, wrist extended. Before anyone realised what was happening, a cloud of shimmering mist descended upon Linus and entered his body. A few moments later Linus sat up. "You didn't have to do that, don't waste your blood on me, I haven't got long to live," he said quietly. "But thank you."

"I know... a few days, perhaps..." Anders sighed. "This isn't a cure but it will help with the pain."

"What was that?" Markus asked. "I've never seen healing magic like that..."

Anders shifted uncomfortably and looked away, so Linus answered for him.

"He summoned a spirit for me," he smiled. "Compassion, I think... it's soothing."

"Blood magic..." Markus shook his head.

"Blood magic is but a tool," Linus objected. "It's what you use it for that matters."

While Markus were debating the moral rights and wrongs of using blood magic for healing, Lucanis sat next to Anders and put his arm around his shoulders.

"That wasn't just another spell," he said softly. "You are shaking."

"I had to be quick," Anders replied just as softly. "It was..."

"Intense," Lucanis pulled him close. "But I've got you. It's like a tango."

"Antivans..." Linus was watching them. "It's been so long since I heard those words..."

He said it very quietly, probably to himself, but Lucanis looked up.

"Another Crow? I noticed you watching me," he smiled.

"Your gait is unmistakable... it's your training, I expect," Linus nodded. "It brings back memories... my friend was killed many years ago... by another Crow..."

"It's a plague, yes," Lucanis nodded. "Faction feud. My parents were killed that way. My cousin's parents too. And yet the House did not fall."

"I wondered why my friend was killed... I blamed myself - he joined me for a time, and I thought the Crows killed him because he stopped taking contracts... I should have sent him away, but..." Linus shook his head slowly.

"No, Antivan Crows do not kill their members just because they take a holiday," Lucanis said firmly. "His death was not your fault."

...

The following morning a fairly large party was seen marching from the Grey Wardens Head Quarters towards one of the Deep Roads entrances. It consisted of a dozen Ferelden Wardens led by Alistair, accompanied by Avernus, Anders, Lucanis, Dorian and Emmrich. Alistair tried to convince Avernus to stay behind, but he was having none of it - he was by far the most powerful mage among them and he was not going to sit back with the wounded. Alistair tried to object that he was also by far the oldest person in the group but gave up when Avernus threatened to turn him into a toad. It was a joke of course, but it did end the discussion. Avernus was going into battle, and that was that.

Such a formidable group had no difficulty dispatching stray darkspawn blocking their way; they also didn't have much trouble with blighted boils inside the cavern, not giving them any chance to use their magic on the mages. The progress thus far was steady, but they were not in a rush - Anders made sure that all wounds were treated as soon as possible. Some Wardens were getting impatient and Lucanis recalled his own annoyance with Anders for the same reason, but it was only this diligence that got them through the more difficult campaigns. They all knew that of course, they all knew that the real fight had not yet begun, and so they all dutifully treated their wounds at every stop.

"You wouldn't say that, but Anders can be extremely persuasive," one Warden was telling another while bandaging his cuts. "This is nothing, just a flesh wound... but no, I've got to bandage it or he won't leave me alone," he smirked.

"Anders doesn't look like a bully, but I would never cross a blood mage," the other Warden replied. "Have you seen him angry? You will today... darkspawn gets him angry. He's not a mage to cross..."

Finally they reached a large cavern that looked like a Blight goddess might reside there - blighted boils were everywhere, and they were huge, flailing their tentacles around, making it impossible to walk anywhere. And then, as soon as the Wardens started cutting off the tentacles, darkspawn appeared.

"What the..." one of the Wardens gasped. "I've never seen darkspawn like that! They are like walking blighted boils!!!"

Indeed, instead of the usual genlocks and hurlocks, these darkspawn resembled bloated bodies of drowners, covered in smaller blighted boils... Some even had a blighted boil instead of a head. These creatures were not particularly hard to kill, but therein lay the danger: they exploded spraying their poisonous blood over a large radius, and that poison was sufficiently potent to kill a healthy man within just a few minutes unless an antidote was administered immediately.

"We have no antidotes for this poison," Anders shook his head when Avernus pointed it out. "But there are other ways," he grinned. "This is your teaching! Quick!" A particularly large darkspawn exploded a short distance away, covering several Wardens in poison. Anders rushed to them starting his usual healing wave on the way, but then he did something different: he slit his wrist but did not cast a spell - instead he sprayed his blood over the Wardens, a trick that he learned from Wolf who used to spray his blood over the enemy. Anders' blood fell on darkspawn blood, canceling it out, and now Anders also cast a spell. "You'll be alright now, but be careful... I may not always be at hand," he smiled at the stunned expressions on their faces.

"What did I tell you?" One Warden nudged the other. "And he wasn't even angry!"

"You drank my mixture," Avernus laughed when Anders rejoined him working up a storm for another group of blighted boils. "I wondered what happened to that extra vial!"

"I saw what it did to Wolf, and I wanted the same," Anders grinned. "Of course, it isn't the same because I'm a mage and he's not, but the effect is well worth it."

"I'll have to examine you when we're back at Soldier's Peak," Avernus was making mental notes, never stopping shooting lighting over the entire cavern.

"If we get to return to Soldier's Peak..." Anders' voice fell. "Here comes the goddess."

They were undoubtedly in the right cavern. The creature that appeared before them could no longer be called a woman or an elf. Medusa would probably be the nearest description. Her once elven body had huge tentacles growing from almost everywhere, and she had smaller tentacles on her head instead of hair. She wore a solid mask covering her face, and Anders thought it was just as well, she probably didn't have a face any longer. She wore a garment that was once a robe but that had now frayed and split into strips that were moving with the tentacles as she moved. She still had arms, it seemed, for she only used two limbs to cast spells. She probably still had legs, but instead she walked on tentacles and it looked as if she hovered.

"You are destroying my creation!" She cried with a clear voice, perhaps the only thing about her that was still elven. "You killed my dragon!" She sounded angry. "You seek to kill me as well, it seems! How very foolish!" She laughed an angry laugh and a large fireball started gathering before her.

"Take cover!!!" Anders shouted and everyone tried to find cover, wondering how futile it was.

The goddess cast her spell and the whole cavern was incinerated. No one had seen such power before.

"Are we dead?" One Warden asked another.

"You're asking me?" The other shook his head. "I dunno... but I think not. The others are also stirring."

Indeed, after the initial shock, the Wardens and the mages carefully got up and moved to the next line of dead blighted boils that they used for cover - cover that actually worked. No one was certain for how long, but having survived the first fireball, they were determined to survive the next one as well. Their strategy was to surround the goddess and to go about cutting off her tentacles that were feeding off the Blight on the ground - Ishala had told them that, that was a way to deprive the goddess of her power and then eventually kill her. It was going to be a lengthy battle, they had to be careful... but at the same time they had to advance.

"We need to draw her attention," Anders got out his dagger. "We cast a blizzard... err... can I power a blizzard with blood? Never tried it before... We cast a blizzard together, Avernus, and let's hope it'll douse her fire for a time..."

"You can power anything at all with blood," Avernus nodded, joining in the casting.

Their blizzard swept the cavern, freezing some of the goddesses tentacles solid and certainly getting her attention. While she searched for the pesky mages who spoiled her hairdo, the Wardens got her surrounded and started chopping off whatever they could reach. With the lowest tentacles damaged, the goddess dropped to the ground. Yes, she still had legs.

"Insolent mages!!" She bellowed. "You don't even know what magic is!"

"Take cover!!!" Anders shouted again, seeing a lighting orb gathering strength in the goddess' hands. He wasn't sure cover would help against lightning, but he had to try.

A massive storm engulfed the cavern, lightning was shooting from everywhere, or so it seemed... but by luck or by miracle, it was hitting blighted boils instead of the Wardens... and no one was seriously hurt. Somewhat dazed, the Wardens got up and continued their assault.

...

They cut off a lot of tentacles but the goddess was showing no sign of weakening. She cast another spell and grew in size, now towering over all of them, shooting spells from above. Anders tried to tell everyone that it was only an illusion, that she wasn't really that tall, but everyone was too busy fighting to actually listen.

"We must get to her head," Lucanis stopped attacking tentacles and found Anders. "Otherwise it will take too long. She is weakening, but only a little. It will take us days to wear her down..."

"And we will be worn down ourselves by then," Anders nodded. "But... how to get to her head? Now that she's that tall?"

"Is she or is she not actually that tall?" Lucanis squinted. "Because if I am going to stab her in the eye, I need to know where that eye is."

"You cannot be sure," Emmrich stood nearby and overheard their conversation. "It could be an illusion, that's what we would do, but she's an ancient elf - they had different magics. She could have physically enlarged her body by dispersing the matter--"

"Never mind how she did it," Lucanis cut him off. "But does this mean that her eye is actually where I see it?"

"Yes, it does," Emmrich smiled. "But mind the mask."

"Cast me a blizzard," Lucanis looked at the mages. "It's better if the target isn't moving around too much."

This time three mages were casting a blizzard together, and it had the desired effect - the cavern froze over and the goddess found herself rooted to the spot, at least for a short time. Lucanis leapt, his spirit wings carried him up, straight to the goddess' head. He thrust his sword into an eye opening of the mask, hoping he would hit something worth hitting. A sharp scream told him that he did. The goddess shook off her stiffness and threw him off, flinging him away with incredible force. Her illusion magic was dispelled and she shrank to her normal size, and although her tentacles were still deadly and she could still cast powerful spells, the Wardens charged at her all at once and with the help of the mages they finally overwhelmed her. It wasn't Lucanis who dealt the killing blow and in all honesty it was impossible to tell which of the myriad of cuts was the one that finally got her. She stopped moving, her tentacles lay limp. A shimmering orb rose from her body, hovered over the cavern and disappeared in a tunnel leading into the earth.

...

That victory was hard won. Several Wardens were dead and all were injured, mages were exhausted and wounded and Lucanis was unconscious from his fall. Anders insisted on a short rest before going back and proceeded converting his blood into healing magic for everyone else... until Alistair finally stopped him.

"You need strength to walk back, I don't want to carry you," he said, taking away Anders' dagger. "No more bloodletting. It's an order, Warden." He looked stern, and Anders realised that Alistair never really gave orders, never pulled rank or even referred to anyone as "Warden".

"Yes, Commander," Anders nodded and smiled. "Let's go home."

[Lena Wolf]

Morning Star, 3E411 - Concussion

Lucanis had a concussion. When the goddess flung him away with great force, he hit the ground hard and passed out. He remained unconscious for the rest of the battle and even for some of the way back to the Grey Wardens Head Quarters. He came to at some point along the way, but the rocking of the stretcher made him dizzy and unwell and he lost consciousness again. By the time they arrived at the fortress, he was awake but couldn't even sit up.

"At least I am alive," he was saying with difficulty, his voice slurring. "Stop fussing over me." He tried shaking his head but quickly realised that it was a bad idea. Anders was right - he should lie still and allow his body to heal. Of course Anders wasn't going to leave him without help, and so fussing continued.

Lucanis wasn't the only person in need of healing, however. Every Warden and every mage that went to fight the goddess and that weren't dead, were injured one way or the other. Most injuries were magical, caused by fire and shock spells, but necrosis was also common, induced by some new fast acting blight magic. It wasn't the usual blight, it was like black rot eating at the flesh, and those black spots were spreading quickly. Anders was using his blood to counter the necrosis, not through blood magic but directly, by applying his blood onto the wound. The Wardens were very suspicious of this technique at first, but soon became convinced in its efficacy and allowed Anders to proceed... after all, they didn't have much choice. Avernus was watching it very closely, it was thanks to his mixture that Anders had drank years ago, that his taint was now able to counter the Blight itself.

"We should be able to use my blood as well," he said after another application. "Your wrists are getting very scarred," he added with concern. "Only my blood is so much more tainted than yours because I'm older... it will need to be tested to make sure it's safe."

"What would be the consequence if it is unsafe?" Anders straightened up. "We must not make things worse!"

"I don't know what the consequence would be," Avernus sighed. "This is uncharted territory. I only meant the mixture as a weapon, but you are using it for healing, and this new blight is nothing like what we've seen before... Someone will have to take a risk and try my blood instead of yours."

"I am not sacrificing any of my patients!" Anders cried a little too loudly and several heads turned. "Ugh, I didn't mean to announce it like that," he cleared his throat. "But it still stands: no testing. I have enough blood for everyone."

"And that's my point," Avernus looked stern. "I don't think you do." He paused, watching Anders glare at him. Then he asked with a smile: "Tell me, how did you first discover that your blood could be used for healing? It wasn't the intended effect and I didn't tell Wolf anything about it because I didn't know it myself."

"Well... when those blighted boils started exploding... I had to do something," Anders said with unease. "I used my blood against darkspawn before - spraying them with it, like Wolf did. It harmed darkspawn, so I figured it would counter the poison in blighted blood... yes, yes, alright, I see where you are going: the first Wardens I sprayed with my blood were my test subjects. But it isn't the same! Wardens got my blood on them before and no one suffered any ill effects, so I knew it would not harm them! I just didn't know whether it would help... but it did."

"And someone will have to try my blood instead of yours because you are running out," Avernus said quite firmly. Then, turning to the wounded Wardens on the cots around them, he called to them: "You've heard what we were just discussing. Someone will need to be the first to try my blood instead of that of Anders. I think it is safe, but I could be wrong."

"I'll do it," one of the Wardens spoke up. His whole leg was covered in necrosis. "I got it real bad. I reckon I'll either die or you'll have to amputate the leg, and quickly - I need to keep my groin intact for... reasons," he grinned. "So go on. It can't get any worse."

His joke lifted the mood and everyone laughed, even in the middle of all the blood, burns and necrosis. Avernus took out his dagger and slit his wrist, and a spray of very dark blood fell on the Warden's leg.

"Wow, your taint is really deep," the Warden whistled. "How can you stand the song?" He looked at Avernus with new-found respect.

"With difficulty," Avernus shook his head. "I keep busy. Now, let's see. How do you feel?"

"Alive," the Warden grinned. "Better. I think the stronger taint actually helps... and look - the black rot is retreating!" The blackness on his leg was indeed retreating slightly. Avernus wasn't holding out any hope of actually clearing it but at least it seemed to stop spreading. The leg would have to be amputated anyway, but it was no longer urgent. The test was a success.

"So, you will now leave these patients to me," Avernus pulled down the sleeve on Anders' arm. "No more bloodletting for several hours at least - you must regenerate. Go see to the other patients, the ones that just need herbs and potions and traditional healing." He nodded to himself and turned to the patients. Anders stood aghast - this was the first time that Avernus took charge of a situation, and his authority was unquestionable.

"Good to have you finally completely with us, Master Avernus," he said quietly but distinctly and several Wardens nodded.

"Yes, yes, I've been hiding behind my research long enough," Avernus brushed him off, examining the next patient. "Go on. We both have work to do. Celebrations will have to wait."

...

Lucanis was having very strange dreams. His concussion was making him dizzy and he thought that sleep would be his best medicine, and so he tried to sleep rather than just pass out. But his dreams had him wake up in cold sweat which was hardly restful and not just a little embarrassing. Master assassin was afraid of something in his dream, and the worst part of it was that he could not remember what it was once he woke up, although the feeling of fear and almost panic lingered for a time.

He didn't know how much time passed since they arrived at the Head Quarters; it could have been a few hours or a few days, but this time Lucanis could sit up on his cot without immediately falling back because the world was spinning around him. Of course, the world was perfectly stable, it was his concussion making it seem that the world was spinning... he knew that, but it didn't help.

Lucanis sat up and looked around. He was in the infirmary wing, or rather a part of the dormitory filled with wounded Wardens. Several healers were walking from cot to cot, looking tired. He noticed Avernus in the far corner slitting his wrist. Anders seemed to be in the next room, he thought he heard his voice. What about Dorian and Emmrich? They both had more burns and scrapes than they were used to, he was sure. Perhaps they were next door...

He decided to get up and go see for himself. He felt a little hungry too, which he took to be a good sign - his concussion must be healing. He stood up, then took a few steps, holding onto furniture. The world was still rocking around him but it was no longer spinning out of control. One of the healers shot him a glance but he must have looked stable enough because the healer turned back to his patient. Lucanis walked to the doorway and looked into the next room. Anders wasn't there, it was just another room filled with cots with wounded Wardens. Perhaps Anders was taking a break... nah... Lucanis smirked to himself. No way. He'd be healing someone, slitting his wrists until he passed out... perhaps he did pass out... at least this was not Kirkwall, someone would help, of that Lucanis was sure.

The next room down the corridor was the one where the old Wardens were staying - Roderik, Markus and Linus. It had more cots now, most of them occupied by other wounded Wardens. He looked in, holding onto the door frame. There was Anders changing bandages on one of the Wardens... "Ugh, that rotten flesh looks bad..." Lucanis noticed himself thinking, as if he was outside of his mind somehow. Perhaps his concussion wasn't healed yet after all. Sharp smell of burned flesh briefly filled the room - Anders was carterising the wound... That smell made Lucanis twitch and gag, it hit a nerve, it was strange, he was never that sensitive to smells of the flesh before, not in his line of work... Then, as the sweet scent of fresh blood reached him, he felt dizzy and the world started spinning again... he was holding onto the door frame but the nearest cot was too far, even though it was just a few steps away... he would collapse then and there...

"You should be in bed, you are not ready to walk yet," he heard a familiar voice somewhere in the fog. He didn't fall, someone was holding him close, someone smelling of burnt flesh and fresh blood... "I've got you. Let's get you to bed."

...

Lucanis slept badly, strange dreams were tormenting him, he kept waking up in cold sweat, not able to remember what it was that terrified him so much. Not being able to remember made him angry. If only he could remember, he would deal with it, dissect the dream, apply logic to it, show to himself that it was all nonsense, nothing to worry about... and after that the dream would not return. But by making him forget it, the dream kept eluding him and kept tormenting him again and again.

He woke up again and saw himself on a cot in the room with the old Wardens where he collapsed. Whoever helped him, must have put him on one of the empty cots there. The smell of burnt flesh was long gone, the smell of blood too, now he could only smell herbs and infusions, besides the bodily scents of half a dozen people sharing one room...

Lucanis decided to try getting up. Surely, his concussion must have healed some more, the world didn't seem to be spinning. He sat up, then got up from the cot, making sure to hold onto something, just in case.

"It's still too early," Anders stood behind him, now smelling of infusions. "You'll get dizzy again. You're impatient," he smiled, putting his arm around Lucanis.

"I... couldn't sleep," Lucanis found his voice. It still hissed and slurred a little but was better than before.

"Nightmares?" Anders looked concerned. "I saw you thrashing a few times. The Fade can be very disturbing."

"The Fade?" Lucanis faced him. "Those are just dreams..."

"We go to the Fade when we dream," Anders nodded. "Well, not physically, but our spirits go to the Fade. Mages realise it, non-mages don't, yet it's the same for all of us. The Fade... well, you know. You've been there yourself."

"That was different," Lucanis shook his head and regretted it. "When I went to fight... I remembered everything. But these dreams... they are just slipping away."

"That's the usual way, yes..." Anders got a better hold of Lucanis and tried to nudge him towards his cot. "And still you should return to bed."

Lucanis was going to protest that he would rather walk around a little, he jerked his head and it gave him a sharp pang of headache that felt like an explosion inside his head and he blacked out, if only momentarily. He should have collapsed but again someone was holding him close.

"I've got you," Anders said in his ear. "Can you hear me? Yes? I am here."

"I met Mathilda in the Fade," Lucanis suddenly remembered all of his dreams. "Mathilda of twenty five years ago, just as I remember her... and I was a young man as well. We spent time together... I never stopped loving her... But it was she, Mathilda, not a memory of Mathilda, you understand? She was there... I know, I touched her... I kissed her... we made love... in her old room where she used to live when we were young... I didn't want it to stop..."

"How did you get out of the Fade?" Anders asked in a whisper.

"My heart was bleeding... too much pain... It was Mathilda and we were twenty years old... But I am not twenty years old any longer, something kept reminding me of that. Like a knife through the heart... My Mathilda could not be real... Then I'd wake up in cold sweat." Lucanis looked Anders in the eye and saw that Anders was very serious. This was not just a dream. "I could not remember the dream until just now," he continued. "I would fall asleep and Mathilda would be there. Everything would repeat. Too much pain in my heart, and I wake up again. But every time she is more beautiful than before, every time she tries harder to please me, to keep me there, and I am willing, oh so willing, I don't ever want it to stop... I love her still..."

"It isn't just a dream," Anders said gravely. "You met a Desire Demon. The demon took the shape of Mathilda, it is quite real. The demon aims to please, it will make you happy and you will stay in the Fade forever."

"But why?"

"The demon will devour your soul."

"That's... terrifying." Lucanis suddenly felt the terror that made him wake up from his dreams. "I thought only mages could be possessed by demons like that."

"You are not possessed, and no, not only mages," Anders sighed. "Demons really don't care whose soul they devour, but mages are easier to find. Mages face demons all the time, we have to learn to resist them or to avoid them if we can. Some mages cannot overcome the terror though... some indeed ask to be made tranquil - that severs the connection to the Fade. That too can be done to anyone, not just mages. It's just..."

"I get it, mages light up in the Fade, attract demons... and I guess I light up now too..." Lucanis smirked. "How do you stand it?"

"Don't give in."

"I shall never go to sleep again," Lucanis said with determination.

"It's not that bad... you'll learn to avoid them," Anders nudged him towards his cot again. "It's not like you've got an Archdemon singing you lullabies..."

"Good grief..!"

"It can always be worse, right?" Anders smirked. "So, go back to sleep. You are not alone in the Fade. Where did the pain come from? Who made you wake up? It wasn't you, you wanted to stay, so who was it?"

"I have to go back to find out."

"You already know the answer."

"Can you defeat a demon in the Fade? In your dream?" Lucanis looked resolved.

"Yes, you can," Anders said slowly. "But you can also lose the battle and die. Be careful. Nothing is as it seems in the Fade."

[Renee]

Dang, where's my bookmark? Ah, here. First Seed 10, 4E 192. Hauk is about to escort Yrseke to a business meeting. "Keep me alive!" Love that.

Meeting is in the sewers! Yikes.

Three against one, yeah, that's really not fair. But really it's going to be three against two.

"I don't believe in fighting with honour, I prefer to win myself" -- Sometimes this is the best way.

Hauk gets seduced by Reesa, whoo. That was a funny scene.


http://chorrol.com/forums/index.php?s=&...st&p=341155

This post has been edited by Renee: Feb 17 2025, 05:44 PM

[Lena Wolf]

Sun's Dawn, 3E411 - Nothing is as it seems in the Fade

"But really, Anders, you are not gay and neither is Lucanis. What do you think will happen once the novelty of your relationship will have worn off? You are both confusing friendship with love."

Neve was sitting on a large cushion plucking the strings of a teardrop-shaped guitar. The room was dimly lit and the fog from her waterpipe was hiding the walls. Anders was reclining on more cushions covering a large divan, blowing rings of waterpipe fog of his own.

"Are we confusing it?" He looked at Neve through the fog. "And how do you know all this? And more importantly, why do you care?"

"I've been watching you," She smiled. "You cut an impressive figure, Warden. Quite to my taste."

"Oh?" Anders lifted himself slightly on an elbow. "Are you... chatting me up?" He grinned.

"I am, I suppose," Neve smiled radiantly at him. "I should be the one dancing the tango with you, not Dorian or Lucanis!" She pouted her lips in mock offence.

"Well, we can still dance a tango!" Anders laughed. "I'm sure neither Dorian nor Lucanis would mind. Right after the Blight, at The Gay Vint. It's a date, Neve. Don't stand me up." He was still laughing gently, watching Neve with interest. She focused on her guitar for a while, playing a variation on a traditional song, something that was both familiar and novel at once.

"You killed the goddess," Neve said to her guitar.

"We did," Anders looked up, blowing a thin jet of fog through the rings that were still hanging there.

"Without us," Neve sighed.

"So?" Anders turned, now facing Neve, but still reclining on the divan.

"We are no enemies."

"We are rivals."

"We should not be," Neve shook her head. "I want to get close to you." She put down her guitar and moved to the divan, reclining next to Anders. "Even closer than this..." She pressed herself to him. "What do you taste of?" She put her arms around him and kissed him.

...

"Blood!" Anders sat up in his bed, having woken up in cold sweat. "She tastes of blood!"

He jumped off the bed, realising that Lucanis stayed on the cot in the common room. He wanted to face the Desire Demon in the Fade... and that could be deadly! He was so unprepared... he wasn't a mage, he never faced a demon before... he should not be undergoing a Harrowing! But of course he could not become possessed and turn into an abomination because he already was one... Anders shook his head, trying to steady himself. Was he confusing friendship with love? Who was it that he met just now in the Fade? What kind of a demon..?

Anders got dressed and went to find Alistair. He looked in on Lucanis and breathed with relief finding him sleeping quietly. For the moment he was safe.

"Alistair," Anders touched his shoulder. "Alistair, wake up."

"Hmm..? What time is it..? Huh? Anders? What's up?" Alistair finally woke up, rubbing his face.

"Do you still remember how to be a templar?" Anders touched his shoulder again. "Can you feel it?"

"Feel what?" Alistair sat up. "Your magic always tickles, I feel nothing unusual. What happened?"

"Demons," Anders sounded dead serious. "Demons in the Fade. Not here, no, but we have enough mages that... and Lucanis..." He shook his head.

"Lucanis what?" Alistair was trying to make sense of the half sentences that Anders was uttering. "He is already possessed. And you..? You aren't possessed, I can tell!"

"Lucanis met a Desire Demon in the Fade who's been trying to make him stay there. But he woke up every time against his wishes - the Desire Demon appeared as... well... was successful in making him want to stay. It must be Spite that kept waking him up. Spite, that is, the Spirit of Determination. Lucanis finally remembered the dream and I told him it was a demon. He wants to fight it in the Fade. Do you understand what it means?! He could die! That demon's been feeding on his soul all this time! It's been growing in power! This is dangerous! I've got to help him! Sacrifice someone, open a portal, one person's blood will suffice..."

"STOP!!!" Alistair raised his voice, grabbing Anders by the shoulders with both hands. "Stop right there! You'd NEVER sacrifice anyone! Anders I know is a blood mage, yes, but he gives his own blood to others, not the other way around! What else happened?"

"I think I met a demon in the Fade too," Anders snapped out of his trance. "I just can't figure out what kind. It seemed just like a regular dream... until she kissed me. She tasted of blood..."

"So, that explains your tirade just now," Alistair said in a calmer voice but didn't let go of Anders. "Who was it?"

"Neve," Anders looked him in the eye. "Chatting me up. Wanting to... well. But if it was a Desire Demon, there are so many other women that it could have picked... with immediate success..." He smirked. "So why Neve? And that taste of blood..."

"There's more than one kind of desire," Alistair said softly. "May be it's being subtle?"

"You are a templar, can't you tell? Here's a mage in need of protection," Anders smiled weakly.

"But I cannot sense any demonic influence on you," Alistair looked puzzled. "Are you sure it wasn't the actual Neve?"

"In the Fade..?" Anders looked up. "It is nearly impossible to find another person in the Fade when one is dreaming, so she had to enter it physically, and even then..." He shook his head. "Unless... she had help."

"Solas."

"He can see me, of course... but what is she trying to do?"

"Get you killed, by the looks of it," Alistair smirked. "If you actually went ahead with bleeding someone, I would have to stop you."

"Death by templar."

"You would have been too far gone to listen to reason at that point," Alistair nodded. "I would have to kill you."

"Blood magic messes up the mage's own mind more than anyone else's," Anders nodded. "But Lucanis? What do we do?" He looked worried.

"Lucanis is not a mage; the danger he's facing is just that of battling a powerful demon in its own domain... which is bad enough," Alistair rubbed his chin. "Get Avernus. Come on."

...

Avernus was not in his room. They looked in the infirmary wing but he wasn't there either. Eventually they found him in the courtyard opening a portal to the Fade.

"Lucanis..." he started saying noticing Alistair and Anders approach. His wrists were bleeding badly but there was no sacrificial person involved.

"I am going," Anders looked around for a staff. "You keep the portal open," he nodded to Avernus.

"No, I am going," Alistair picked up a sword and a shield from a rack. "I am a templar. I shall fight that demon."

"Straight through the portal and turn left," Avernus smirked. "Spite is waiting on the other side... his appearance may surprise you..." he shot a glance at Alistair. "Just remember: nothing is as it seems in the Fade."

[Lena Wolf]

Sun's Dawn, 3E411 - Your wish is my command

Alistair stepped through the portal into the Fade and Avernus lowered his arms, letting the portal shrink until it's needed again. Anders was still staring at it, unsure what to do.

"Go sit with Lucanis," Avernus turned to him. "I'll stay here and maintain the portal. Go. Keep Lucanis alive. Help him from here. You know you can."

Anders looked up, snapping out of his indecision and shaking off lingering effects of the blood magic spell that he was subjected to in his dream. Having a purpose always helped to overcome mind manipulation of blood magic, and he now knew exactly what he had to do. Keep Lucanis alive until Alistair slays that demon. Right.

...

"Alistair? You're not whom I expected..." A spirit copy of Lucanis greeted Alistair on the other side of the portal.

"Spite? Or do you prefer Determination?" Alistair squinted. "I am a templar. I am better placed to fight a demon."

"Umm... if you say so..." Spite squinted. "My name is Determination. But Spite is shorter. And... may be not too far from the truth... I'm used to it now..." He was saying in a hissing voice, chopping phrases into chunks. Spirits were not accustomed to talking. He led Alistair to a clearing nearby. "It's just here. Lucanis will appear shortly... Avernus has been shielding him... but he is asleep... he will appear... and so will the demon..."

They didn't have to wait long and indeed Lucanis walked in from the fog. He was not physically in the Fade like Alistair, it was Lucanis' spirit dreaming in the Fade while his body was lying on the cot in the infirmary wing. But he looked solid enough... nothing was as it seemed in the Fade.

"Mathilda?" He called. He did not seem to see Alistair or Spite standing there.

"Luca... my love..." A sweet voice sounded from the other end of the clearing and a Desire Demon walked in.

"Mathilda..." Lucanis took a step back, quite involuntarily.

"This is not how he sees her," Spite hissed. "He sees Mathilda..."

"Who's there?" Lucanis turned towards Alistair and Spite, looking straight at them, yet not seeing them.

"Just someone at the door, my love," the demon responded sweetly. "It will be just a moment..." She walked up to Lucanis and kissed him, caressing him gently. Alistair saw a faint shimmering strand flow from Lucanis to the demon. The demon was feeding on his soul.

She let go of him, but he was still looking at Alistair, or rather, at the spot where he heard voices. He was not yet entranced. The demon said something to him softly, embraced him ever so gently, kissed him... until he stopped looking at the spot where Alistair was standing... The demon led him to the far corner of the clearing, waved her hand and made furnishings appear, and there Lucanis sat down on a sofa waiting for her to "answer the door". He was no longer wondering where the voices were coming from.

"Well, it seems we've got guests," the demon walked over to Alistair and Spite. "Intruders, rather," she frowned. "You are intruding on a private moment."

"You cannot have Lucanis, demon," Alistair said rather aggressively. "I am here to fight you!"

"Oh? But Luca seems quite happy to stay," the demon swayed her hips at him. "He has his Mathilda back... like he could never have in your world," she smirked. "Just look at him," she waved her hand and he waved back from the sofa. "He cannot see you. Now, shoo."

"No!" Alistair shouted, plunging his sword into the ground in a cleansing strike that purged all magic around them. The demon shrieked and jumped up - that hurt. But the strike didn't reach far enough to pull Lucanis out of his trance.

"Insolence!" She cried. "I said out!!!" A powerful lightning bolt sent Alistair reeling but he picked himself up and lunged at the demon with his sword. The demon spun in place and swiped at Alistair, shredding his light armour - the demon's fingernails were now long, razor sharp blades...

"Ugh, I forgot how nasty you Desire Demons can be..." Alistair swore. "But no matter! When was the last time you faced a templar?!" He lunged again, this time cutting a gash on the demon's body, and she responded with another shriek. Yes, he still remembered how to be a templar - each of his strikes depleted magicka as well.

They danced, and it was only after a while that Alistair realised that Spite was no longer standing next to him. Spite did not join in the fight either... where was he? But Alistair had no time to ponder this question as the demon kept attacking. Then suddenly she shrieked when Alistair was himself recoiling... someone stabbed her from behind. Alistair looked up - Lucanis stood there with his sword at the ready.

"You are not Mathilda!" He cried, lunging at the demon. "You deceived me! Merda!"

Two fighters were stronger than one but the demon was more than a match for both of them together. Her spells knocked them back and out, her swipes cut through the remnants of their armour and clothing and were now inflicting serious bleeding... They had to work together if they were to gain an upper hand, but she never gave them a chance to regroup. It very much looked like that demon was going to get two souls for the price of one.

...

"Don't give in," Anders was sitting cross-legged by Lucanis' cot. "She'll get you entranced again... there... I think she already got you... Come on, shake it off!" He put his hand on Lucanis' shoulder sending a healing wave through. He didn't know which spell to use, he acted on an instinct. "You know it's an illusion, I told you. You remembered the dream," he kept talking hoping that somehow some of it might come through. But Lucanis remained motionless and his breathing was slowing - he was dreaming.

...

"This is not good," Alistair was rising heavily from another knock-out. "Those lightning bolts... ugh... they hurt." Yet he took a deep breath and resumed his attacks, trying to match Lucanis' lunges, but Lucanis too was reeling from the bolts. "Just keep going..." Alistair told himself. "Nothing else for it. We'll wear her out eventually..." He thrust his sword into the ground again in a cleansing strike, then pulled it out quickly and lunged at the demon while she was momentarily incapacitated. She shrieked - that was a successful move. "Right. Templars do it all the time," Alistair told himself. "Got to think like a templar. Negate all magic. Slay the mage. Slay the demon!" Another cleansing strike before the demon could cast another spell, and now Lucanis lunged at her at the same time as Alistair. Finally they were working together.

The dance went slightly better from that point on. Lucanis had finally seen Alistair, mostly because Alistair's cleansing strikes caught him in their range a few times and the demon's hold over him began to weaken. Lucanis finally remembered what Anders had told him - it's a demon, don't give in. Mathilda was but an illusion. His heart bled at the thought, he lost her again, and this time it was forever. His Mathilda was not dead but it was worse - she changed, she was his Mathilda no more. Half of him wished he'd never learned that he was living an illusion these past days - he had been so happy again. It was better to die happy than to live in pain. Perhaps the demon would make him forget all that? Perhaps the charm could be restored..?

He stopped attacking and lowered his sword. Alistair shot him a glance and realised the danger. The demon had regrouped. Lucanis was entranced again.

"No! Not on my watch!" Alistair leapt towards Lucanis and plunged his sword into the ground at his feet - that cleansing strike was for Lucanis. It worked, he shook his head, looked at Alistair in bewilderment, looked at his sword...

"Merda! Not again!!" He swore and lunged at the demon, but the demon was expecting it. She parried, swiping at both Alistair and Lucanis with the blades of her fingernails, sending them back again... The dance continued.

...

"She is bleeding you," Anders noticed droplets of blood appearing on Lucanis' hands. He opened his shirt and saw blood on his chest as well. "No, I've got to stop this... I cannot stop this... Look at this... it's all over the body!" Anders started panicking, not knowing how to deal with injuries inflicted from the Fade. "Keep him alive, he says!" He rolled his eyes at what Avernus had told him. "How? I cannot give him my blood, he'd get the taint..!" He jumped up and started pacing the room, surely there must be something he could do...

"Stop panicking," Avernus stood in the doorway. "Yes, yes, the portal is holding," he nodded to Anders' alarmed look. "Use conventional healing. Use potions. Use magic. Be there. That's what I did when you were fighting your demons..."

...

Alistair and Lucanis were now attacking together, standing shoulder to shoulder. That way each of Alistair's cleansing strikes also caught Lucanis and cleared the charm that the demon kept placing upon him. Time and time again Lucanis would shake his head in bewilderment then lunge at the demon again. It was going to be a very long dance.

And then suddenly a large bird swooped down on them all... a griffon... no... a crow... A crow the size of a griffon. It circled once then plunged, dissolving into a devastating blast of lighting just above the demon.

"Ahhh..." The demon sighed, spinning. A luminous sphere appeared around her, then dissolved. She stopped spinning and stood smiling, facing her attackers. The blades on her fingers had retreated turning into fingernails again, her demeanour was peaceful, soothing, appeasing... "You are strong, let us stop the fight..." She said in the sweetest of voices and both Alistair and Lucanis could not resist the compulsion to sheathe their swords. "Ahhh... That's better. My brave warriors. My handsome knights..." She smiled radiantly at them, swaying her hips. "Why should we fight..? Why fight when I can give you exactly what you want and more... give you what you don't know yet that you want... long for..."

"You lie, demon!" Alistair exclaimed, shaking his head. His templar training was now paying off - he was not that easily charmed. "All you want is our souls!"

"But that is such a small price to pay for real happiness, is it not?" She looked at each of them in turn. "Alistair... a king's son, but not quite... a king, but not quite... a templar, but not quite... and now, Commander of the Grey, but not quite the same as the one that came before... ahhh... Would you rather not see at least some of it complete? I can make you a templar, a real one - and all without the lyrium addiction. I can make you a king, if you wish it... but no, that's not it... something is lacking in your life, is it not? Ahhh... you never found love... or rather, you thought you did, but she was a mage and you thought you were a templar, and so, again, not quite..." The demon came close to Alistair and was now almost touching him, her bottomless purple eyes locked with his. "What will it be, Alistair? Templar or lover?"

"Do not give in!" Lucanis shook off his trance and grabbed Alistair by the shoulders. "This is a DEMON!!!"

"Huh?" Alistair's eyes were still glazed over, but he was shaking his head again. "Get off me, demon!!!"

"Ahhh..." The demon sighed and started spinning again. "Such a pity... I do rather prefer peaceful resolutions... but your wish is my command..." She raised her arms incanting a spell and a ball of luminescence started gathering above her head.

"Stand back!!" Alistair grabbed Lucanis by the hand. "It'll wipe us out!!"

"If only Anders was here..." Lucanis was watching the demon's growing orb. "He casts a storm like you wouldn't believe!"

"Anders..." Alistair started saying something but the orb suddenly burst with blinding light pushing them right back into the fog.

"Anders warned me of this," Lucanis was trying to decide whether he was already dead. "You can die in your dream... Anders... How I need you now, my friend..."

"Come on, get up!" Lucanis heard Alistair's voice. "We've been blinded. But we are not dead! Get up!" Someone was tugging on his sleeve. "Up, up you get!!" Alistair was urging him. "Follow my voice! I can sense her! I am a templar! A REAL templar, you hear me, demon?! I am coming for you!!!"

...

Lucanis was thrashing in his cot, even despite the lavender incense that Anders was burning right next to him, despite all the calming magic that Anders poured into him - Lucanis was thrashing to the point that sometimes Anders had to hold him down so that he wouldn't tumble to the floor.

"She really has you fight for it, doesn't she," Anders shook his head. "Well, you're fighting, so you're not charmed, that's something at least... Keep going... I am here... I'll heal your wounds... I'll catch you if you fall... my friend... my lover... my love..." He focused on another healing spell, pouring as much as he could without using blood. "Do not give in!"

...

Alistair charged the demon. He could not see her, everything was erased by an orb of blinding light hovering above them, but he could sense her, her presence, her magic. He was a templar, he did not need eyes to see evil! He suddenly remembered an old templar they met during the Fifth Blight somewhere in the capital. He was almost completely blind, a common affliction resulting from taking lyrium since young age. He was ageing, and his strength was not that of a young man, but his will compensated amply for that. He did not need eyesight to find the demon. "That templar died that day," Alistair sighed to himself. "And he had known from the start he would die... he only hoped he would take the demon with him... and he did... with a little help from us..." He sighed again, all while slashing and slicing at the demon before him without needing to see it. "And this here is my demon, it seems... She came for Lucanis but she met me... Well, hello, darling! Let's dance!"

Lucanis couldn't see the demon either, he too was completely blinded by the orb. He could not sense the demon like Alistair, but he could hear Alistair's grunts and the demon's shrieks and moans, and he tried to hit something in that direction, hoping it wouldn't be Alistair. Which way? He did not know... but something seemed to guide his hand... he lunged and the demon shrieked, he lunged again, and again he hit his target. "Spite?" He reached inside himself and felt his presence. "Is that you? Alright! You don't need eyesight, do you? Together we fight!"

"I guide you, partner..." Spite's voice said inside his head. "Open your wings..."

But Lucanis could not open his spirit wings in the Fade, not being there physically seemed to be the problem. Surely, Spite knew that... spirit wings were Spite, after all... unless he meant something else?

"Anders... Mathilda is gone... Gone from my life, now for good... Gone from my heart... it bled out... I know how you feel, my friend... Bésame, bésame mucho... Que tengo miedo a perderte, perderte despuis..." He lunged and slashed at a streak of purple appearing among all the white, and every time there was a shriek or a moan, he was hitting his target again and again, so then perhaps there was a chance to survive this, to win even, may be despite all odds... "Stay with me... Quiero tenerte muy cerca mirar me en tus ojos verte junto a mi... That wasn't a tango... you still owe me another dance..."

The orb finally started dimming and Alistair and Lucanis found that they had not been permanently blinded. Their vision was returning, but what they saw did nothing to lift their spirits - the demon was still there, still spinning, still fighting... Were they even hurting her?!

"It's an illusion, keep going!" Alistair shouted to Lucanis, noticing his dejected look. "We are hurting her! I can sense it!"

"Anders..! Your storm! We need your storm!!" Lucanis shouted into the void, not expecting anything really, just acting on an impulse... again... "Stay with me..!"

They did not immediately notice a large bird swooping over the clearing, a crow the size of a griffon. It circled once and then dissolved into the mightiest lightning storm they'd ever seen, pushing them back into the fog...

...

"NOOOOO!!!" Lucanis on the cot lost his pulse. "No, no, no! You do not die on me!" Anders jumped up, ripping off Lucanis' shirt in preparation for a heart massage. "Stay - with - me! - Stay - with - me!" He punctuated his movements with a breath between each phrase, he was not going to lose his friend to a demon in the Fade! If only he could be there... demons were weak to lightning... he would whip up the biggest storm they'd ever seen, his wrists were healed, he'd give it his all..! But he was not in the Fade and his friend was lying lifeless on a cot with only his chest compressions keeping his blood circulating... "Stay - with - me! - Stay - with - me..!"

...

"Stay back, demon!!!" A hissing voice ripped through the air, someone was casting more lightning bolts and the demon was shrieking...

By the time Alistair and Lucanis recovered from their knock-out, the mage in the clearing was finishing off the demon.

"Take that!" He hissed one final time and they saw the demon's form go limp and slide to the ground, then dissolve into the Fade without a trace.

"Anders..?" Lucanis stared at the spirit shape of the mage. "What are you doing here..?"

"But I am always here... always with you..." The mage replied with some surprise.

"This isn't Anders," Alistair smiled. "This is Spite in his new human form." He paused as Lucanis and Spite stared at each other. "Time to go," he patted Lucanis on the shoulder. "Avernus must be tired keeping the portal open. And... no one needs to know what that demon was offering... not to you and not to me, right?" He smiled again as Lucanis nodded. "It's all but a dream anyway. Time to wake up, Lucanis."

Alistair watched Lucanis vanish and Spite follow him, then grinned picturing the first time Anders were to see Spite in his new human form... that'd be a laugh! And indeed, no one needed to know what happened that night in the Fade.

[Lena Wolf]

Sun's Dawn, 3E411 - Friends

"That was a hard fight," Avernus greeted Alistair when he stepped through the portal from the Fade. "You look dreadful."

"Yeah... it was pretty tough," Alistair nodded.

"But you were successful."

"Lucanis should be waking up shortly."

"How does it feel - being a real templar?" Avernus asked softly, closing the portal. "Should we mages worry?"

"Of course not," Alistair smirked. "Templars are meant to protect mages from evil, that's how I see it... It's just that sometimes that evil hides in the mages themselves..."

"I see you still remember the good book," Avernus patted him on the shoulder. "If more templars remembered their true purpose, the whole mage-templar war of the past ten years could have been avoided..."

"Which is why I prefer being a Grey Warden," Alistair frowned. "I hate politics."

"The Queen of Ferelden was very happy when you said that... and abdicated your birthright to the throne in her favour."

"Yeah... she was also very happy to learn that Grey Wardens cannot have children," Alistair smirked, returning his sword and shield to the rack and shaking his head at his shredded armour.

"It's best she doesn't know the whole truth," Avernus grinned.

"Like, how many Grey Warden children are serving with us? They have a near immunity to the Joining Cup... having joined at conception already..."

"But none of them are yours," Avernus closed the topic. "Come. We'll find a healer to patch you up... I am too exhausted at the moment."

"How's Anders?" Alistair gave Avernus a long look turning towards the infirmary wing.

"He was panicking last time I saw him... he never treated wounds inflicted from the Fade before... But I have faith in the boy - he will have redressed himself."

"Hardly a boy..." Alistair grimaced. "He's past forty five."

"And I am past three hundred," Avernus objected. "I remember when Wolf brought him in..."

"Point taken," Alistair smiled. "We should look in on him."

They were just coming into the room where Anders was still very anxiously checking Lucanis' pulse every few minutes. He had recovered from his cardiac arrest, but there was no telling what else was to come...

"We're done," Alistair told him. "Lucanis will wake up eventually."

"Thank you!" Anders hugged Alistair tightly to Alistair's great surprise. "But... you look dreadful! Hang on - let me just..." He grabbed his dagger.

"No, Anders, no blood magic today," Alistair stopped him. "You look dreadful too. I'll get another healer. You still have a patient to look after."

Alistair and Avernus left and Anders dropped back to where he'd been sitting - at Lucanis' side, cross-legged by his cot. So, he didn't have to check for pulse every few minutes any more, Lucanis was just sleeping now... exhausted after the fight, no doubt. He would wake up eventually... it's best to let him sleep. Anders put his head on Lucanis' shoulder and his arm across his chest and fell asleep too. It had been one hard night.

...

Several hours later Lucanis woke up. He had a slight headache and his neck felt stiff but otherwise he seemed to be alright. He remembered everything that happened in the Fade, and it didn't feel like a dream. He half-opened his eyes just to make sure that he was definitely back in Mundus. Of course, he already knew that - the smells and sounds of the infirmary wing were unmistakable, but still he had to see it.

The first thing he saw was a blond head resting on his shoulder and a scarred arm across his chest - he couldn't see the rest of Anders, just his head and arm. He was still sleeping. Lucanis smiled to himself, propped his head against Anders and closed his eyes. He'd seen enough.

Another hour or so later Lucanis woke up again. Someone was watching them, he could feel it. He looked around, trying not to move so as not to disturb Anders. No, that someone was standing behind them, he could not see who it was... oh well... no matter. He propped his head against Anders again, burying his face in his hair and closed his eyes. There was no rush.

The lavender incense that Anders was constantly burning by Lucanis' bed, was all used up, and the lack of familiar smell woke him up. He should refill the burner... He sighed, and with that slight movement felt Lucanis' face against his hair. Perhaps he shouldn't move, shouldn't disturb him... But Lucanis woke up too and stirred, and when Anders finally decided to sit up and lift his arm from Lucanis' chest, he found Lucanis' fingers intertwined with his.

"It's done," Lucanis whispered in his ear. "The demon is no more... and with it, also Mathilda."

"That must have hurt," Anders turned his head and found Lucanis' lips.

"You have no idea..."

The infirmary wing was buzzing with conversation around them, healers were going in and out with salves and potions, bandages were being changed, healing magic performed... and they heard none of it. Finally Anders realised that he was still sitting on hard stone floor, and had been sitting in the same position for hours...

"We should get some privacy," he pulled away slightly.

"I have no issues kissing you in public," Lucanis grinned. "Let them watch."

"It's not kissing I'm thinking of..." Anders grinned, his playful smile returning. "But really, I want to get off this stone floor... and you need a bath - you are covered in blood, head to toe."

"Why am I covered in blood?" Lucanis finally realised that his chest was exposed and indeed covered in blood. "What happened to my shirt? I don't walk around with my shirt undone like some slob!"

"You were dead," Anders' voice went hoarse at the recollection. "I was massaging your heart. The shirt was in the way."

"Huh... But I thought... it was just my spirit fighting..."

"It's like I told you - you can die in the Fade," Anders frowned. "I had no idea how to treat injuries inflicted in the Fade... but the demon was bleeding you... What did she have - razor-sharp blades for fingernails? One Desire Demon I fought had blades like that..."

"Blades, yes," Lucanis nodded. "And magic."

"Right," Anders sat up, really pulling away from Lucanis this time. "Come on. There should be hot water down in the kitchens. Hold on to me - you still have a concussion, remember? You can't walk on your own yet."

"Concussion?" Lucanis got up and realised that the world was rocking again, although not spinning. "I had no concussion in the Fade..."

"That's because your concussed head was here in Mundus," Anders smirked. "But now you're back in your body and your concussion."

...

"Ahem," Harding cleared her throat. "Guys? I've got something to tell you."

"Huh? Just how long have you been standing there, Harding?" Anders turned to her, a steaming bath in the middle of the wash room.

"Long enough to..." Harding giggled. "You could have locked the door!"

"I didn't think anyone would just stand and watch!!!" Anders' nostrils flared, but Lucanis was laughing heartily at the scene.

"Next you'll tell us you'd never expected to see a master assassin in quite such a position..." He was finding it hilarious.

"The thought had crossed my mind..." Harding giggled again.

"Alright, alright, you like to watch! You're a scout! It's in the job description!" Anders was still angry and Lucanis thought it was the funniest part.

"Oh never mind," he patted him on the back. "I'm sure she'd seen you in worse settings before..." He laughed again. "I am going to make coffee."

Anders scowled and decided not to tell Lucanis this time to make tea for Harding instead, but Lucanis remembered.

"So, Head Scout," Anders looked sternly at Harding. "What compelled you to find us with all haste?"

"Well, actually..." Harding gratefully accepted a cup of tea from Lucanis. "Actually, it isn't funny at all. Neve means to kill you," she looked at Anders with significance.

"Yeah, I know," Anders nodded, cooling off. "She already tried. Again."

"How..? When?" Harding was taken aback. "She's been at the Keep all this time... I've been watching her door!"

"Blood magic in the Fade," Anders frowned.

"Wow... that's worse than I thought..." Harding looked lost. "I cannot help you there... we dwarves don't dream... never enter the Fade... I cannot watch her in the Fade..."

"It's alright, Lace," Anders said softly. "No one can watch her in the Fade. Solas is helping her. Perhaps I should try to find him myself."

"That is too dangerous," Lucanis shook his head. "Merda! I should have killed Neve ages ago!" It was Lucanis' turn to get angry.

"Then Solas would have simply found someone else," Anders shook his head. "No, leave her be for now. Till the end..."

"Let's hope it's not your end!" Lucanis retorted. "Talk to Dorian... Avernus? Emmrich too, he knows about the Fade and spirits and stuff..."

"Yeah, let's just put an advertisement in the papers!" Anders snapped. "Blood mage looking for an elven god. Catchy."

"Sounds like a dating request," Harding smirked. "But Lucanis is right, you know - you should talk to someone. Solas is not to be trifled with."

"Oh alright..." Anders sighed. "We should include Alistair as well... and Taash..."

"Taash?" Harding looked surprised. "Taash?" She repeated, as if trying to figure it out. "Taash has been at the Keep all this time... following Davrin around, mostly... and... err... why Taash?" She finally asked, having given up trying to solve this riddle herself.

"Taash does dream," Anders looked straight at Harding. "The qunari have their own powerful magic. She's been visiting me... in the Fade. She is our Fade scout. Did she never tell you that? Perhaps she didn't want to hurt your feelings..."

"Oh..." Harding did look upset. "May be she trusts me less than I thought..."

"Nonsense, Lace," Anders said softly. "It's just that... well... the qunari have different customs around love and sex and friendship... and duty... And even though Taash was brought up in Rivain... she is still a qunari, she follows the Qun. Perhaps you should talk to Dorian about his discoveries with The Iron Bull... and I don't mean the sex part."

"Looks like we all have something to discuss," Harding nodded and Anders thought he saw a tear in her eye. "I'll return to the Keep... I might talk to Dorian on the way... I'll send Taash over..." She got up, throwing one last glance at Anders and Lucanis, still completely naked. "I won't join you for the big discussion, that'd look suspicious," she said matter-of-factly. "But I hope Taash will fill me in afterwards..." She sighed.

"She will," Anders got up and walked over to Harding, then dropped to one knee and hugged her. That way his face was level with hers, his face rather than his midriff. "Friends?" He looked at her and smiled.

"Friends," she smiled back, and this time Anders was sure he saw a tear in her eye.

"What about Varric?" Anders suddenly realised that Varric, being a dwarf, would have the same issue as Harding of not being able to follow things in the Fade. "Does he even know what Neve is doing?"

"That... is a very good question," Harding smiled brightly. "That I can find out!" Her mood visibly improved. "Right! I never thought of following him! Oh! I'll let you know!" She smiled again and ran out of the room.

[Renee]

Lena and Hauk, heading to Arenthia (or so Hauk thinks). Which is Valenwood, if I'm not mistaken.

Besides, you don't know it's mine - you can't be sure. We won't be sure for several years after the child is born."

Several years?

Yea, Hauk's tale of Reesa is pretty darn wretched! Until next time.

[Lena Wolf]

Sun's Dawn, 3E411 - No quiero perderte nunca despues

"You're upset, aren't you?" Lucanis watched Anders close and lock the door after Harding had left, then walk over to the bath tub. "Harding upset you."

"Yes," Anders nodded without turning around. "She just stood there and watched..." He smirked. "I didn't think anyone here would do that."

"She was intruding and she knew it," Lucanis nodded.

"It wasn't what we did..." Anders faced him. "It was how we did it... That was for you only."

"But you forgave her..."

"And you laughed it off... I could see through it, you know."

"Harding is an ally, but not a friend."

"Quite," Anders nodded. "That's why there was nothing to forgive. It was not an offense but a disappointment." He turned back to the bath tub and resumed washing off the traces of their love making. "She will never become a friend."

"I wonder..." Lucanis took the other side of the bath tub. "I wonder how Taash sees Harding..."

"Well, they are 'an item', as we used to say when we kids," Anders smirked. "But the qunari don't equate sex with love and friendship, and Harding should remember that."

"Humans don't always equate it either," Lucanis grinned. "Mostly we don't equate it."

"Let me rephrase: for us love leads to sex, for the quanari it doesn't. In fact, they are taught to keep it completely separate. I don't know how closely Taash follows this teaching... but I fear Harding might be misunderstanding the nature of their relationship from Taash's point of view." Anders finished washing and picked the largest towel from the stack.

"Was that what Dorian discovered on his own experience?" Lucanis finished washing too and eyed Anders' towel with envy - there were no big ones left.

"Dorian was just playing, to start with," Anders nodded. "It was a game, it was for fun... then I think it got a bit more serious for him, but not for The Iron Bull... Bull explained it to me once: he could never become emotionally involved with Dorian because of sex... It sounds bizarre to us but such are their traditions."

"And Dorian had to accept it, of course," Lucanis threw off the towel and proceeded with getting dressed. "This shirt is covered in blood... these trousers also... on the inside..."

"Well, you were covered in blood, that's why we came here," Anders looked up. "There should be a clean robe in the chest... there's usually something."

"I don't wear robes!" Lucanis scowled. "But I suppose it will have to do..." He pulled on the robe and dropped his shirt and trousers into the tub to wash. "So I suppose Dorian was upset when The Iron Bull turned on you all in that fight I heard about?" He picked up their conversation again.

"If he was, he didn't show it," Anders mused. "He killed Bull without hesitation."

"He must have been very hurt," Lucanis decided.

"Dorian never spoke of it, although some people had to ask. Dorian is a very private person."

"Of course, being gay in Tevinter..."

"The only kingdom in Thedas where gay marriage still doesn't exist."

"Bizarre, really," Lucanis shrugged. "I mean, what's the big deal?"

"Dunno," Anders finally unwrapped himself out of the towel and decided to get dressed. "But he's had difficulties at the Magisterium because of that. It is only slightly worse than blood magic... imagine that! And then, when everyone finally had to accept an openly gay Magister, he had to go and buy a blood mage for a slave - me! That put him right back in the centre of unwanted attention."

"Is that why you slept in his bedroom for weeks on end?" Lucanis shook his head at the blood stains on his shirt and trousers that weren't easily coming out.

"The problem is that you cannot prove that you are not doing something. The only thing you can do is try to prove that you are doing something different," Anders nodded, examining his own robe and tossing it into the bath tub to wash. "The suspicion was that he bought a blood mage so that this mage could bleed a few slaves for him to augment his power without Dorian himself having to perform a blood magic ritual... keeping his hands clean, so to speak."

"Disgusting," Lucanis grimaced. "That's worse than doing it yourself."

"Exactly. So the other option was sex... I mean, why else would he buy a blondie like myself?" Anders grinned. "Blonds are not common in Tevinter."

"And of course you being a man, that fits," Lucanis agreed.

"Besides, Dorian doesn't have a permanent partner... so there's always talk that he might be open to marriage one day... To marry a woman, that is. He is a very rich man, and plenty of women wouldn't give monkeys for his preference, as long as they get to his gold..."

"It's always the same, isn't it?" Lucanis looked up from his washing. "Money and power."

"So yeah, he asked me if I would consider doing him a favour... pretending that we were intimate. Of course I obliged. I was coming and going at first, just so that the servants would see us enough, but then someone sent The Crows after me..." he grinned. "And then Dorian insisted I moved into his suite permanently to be protected by his bodyguards. It turned out a good precaution, too."

"Plus the bodyguards could join in the gossip," Lucanis smirked.

"For sure..." Anders laughed, looking up. "Sometimes they'd have to check on us as well..." he winked.

"Didn't Dorian get cross with them for that?"

"He did, and they stopped." Anders gave up trying to wash out a stain left by his potion belt. "I'll need to get a new robe when this is over... these stains don't come out."

"What - you just have the one robe?" Lucanis looked up in surprise.

"Yep... I normally just wear some Grey Warden stuff... never had the coin for clothes..."

"We'll have to change that," Lucanis rinsed out his shirt and trousers decisively. "I think you deserve a few gifts."

"When I was younger..." Anders smiled. "I had a pretty golden earring," he fingered his earlobe. "Then we got into a fight with some darkspawn, they slashed at my ear and I lost it. Wolf gave me a new one later... just as pretty. I had that one for a long time, but then we got taken into a darkspawn prison and, well, I guess darkspawn like gold too... because it vanished. I never replaced it..."

"I can see you still wearing it," Lucanis said softly.

"Yeah..."

Anders focused on washing his robe for a while, and splashing water made his face wet.

"Dorian is a very private person, you know," he returned to their conversation. "You can lie naked next to him and still feel your privacy respected. I just don't know how he does it."

"He doesn't stand and watch?" Lucanis offered.

"Makes you appreciate your friends more when something like this happens," Anders agreed. "We should see how he's doing. And Alistair. Alistair looked dreadful when he came out of the portal..."

"Alistair is a real templar," Lucanis straightened out his shirt on the washing line by the fire. "He could sense that demon even when we both were blinded. Went right for it! I've never seen a templar at work... impressive!"

"I always knew he's a real templar, even when he doubted it," Anders nodded, rinsing out his robe. "It doesn't take lyrium addiction to be one. They are taught to sense magic... they've got the cleansing strike... if that's not magic, then I'm a toad," he smirked. "Magic has many forms... they are just never told that. Wolf believed that everyone has magic... to a varying degree - that's what they believe where he's from. And it makes sense, you know... we all go to the Fade to dream..."

"Don't remind me," Lucanis shook his head. "I've had enough of the Fade to last me a lifetime..." He watched Anders hang up his robe on the washing line. "Done? Then before we go, there's something I need to show you... while the door is locked."

"Oh?"

"If it wasn't a temporary effect..." Lucanis rubbed his chin in doubt. "Then we'll both find out. Here... Spite, show yourself!"

There was some movement of air and a spirit form of a man in a robe appeared in the room.

"It's still the same..." Spite hissed.

"What?!" Anders stared at him. "You are me?!"

"No, I am I but I look like you," Spite shook his head. "For some reason."

"Come on, you know why this happened," Anders squinted at him. "What did you do?"

"It's what you did, not I," Spite contradicted. "Kept pouring magic into him..." He jerked his head at Lucanis.

"Healing magic..." Anders wasn't convinced.

"I think I did this..." Lucanis watched Spite for a while, then stood next to Anders. "I called to you... a few times... Bésame, bésame mucho... Remember that song?" He sang the start of it. "But no... let's change it... No quiero perderte nunca despues..."

[Lena Wolf]

Sun's Dawn, 3E411 - A god's way

"Well, hello, Fen'Harel," an elf walked up to the invisible wall that's been locking Solas in his prison in the Fade. "This prison is superbly designed, I must say," he smirked. "No miscalculations this time."

"What do you want, Elgar'nan?" Solas scowled.

"Oh, nothing, I just thought I'd come and say hello to an old friend," Elgar'nan smiled pleasantly. "Because we used to be friends... ahhh... such a long time ago... Don't you remember, Fen'Harel?"

"I remember," Solas nodded. "I remember it all... how you betrayed us all, All-Father, how you turned on your people, enslaved them... God of Vengeance! But what did your people ever do to you?"

"They turned out to be inferior," Elgar'nan said with disdain. "Not worthy of being elves. They were only good for one thing - obedience."

"You made them this way!" Solas replied hotly. "With your endless retributions! You know no mercy!"

"Mercy is a miscalculation," Elgar'nan smirked. "The word you like very much. Because Fen'Harel does not err but occasionally makes a miscalculation. You killed our people when you created the Veil. It is far worse than 'enslavement', as you call it."

"I miscalculated, true," Solas looked down. "But you are wrong - I err, I recognise that I err. Miscalculations, mistakes, errors - call them what you like, they all have one thing in common: my intent is always pure, which cannot be said about yours."

"Are you quite sure?" Elgar'nan squinted. "Or perhaps are you again mistaken? They call me All-Father for a reason. Between Mythal and myself, we are the elves. All elves come from us. Even you."

"That's rubbish, Elgar'nan, and you know it," Solas grimaced, spitting out the words. "You are not a god! I am not a god! Mythal was not a goddess! We were all created along with this world, the Fade, Mundus, everything. You cannot claim creation!"

"Ahhh, there is the old fire of Fen'Harel!" Elgar'nan laughed. "I was wondering what would bring it out. How is dearest Mythal? It's been a long time since I've heard from her... I miss her so."

"Mythal... is no more." Solas said with a fallen voice and turned away.

"Really?" Elgar'nan came as close to the invisible wall as he could. "I cannot believe you killed your mistress."

"I have."

"Well... actually I lied: I can believe you killed her." Elgar'nan walked back a little. "We warned her of your treachery, but a heart in love does not listen... whatever she saw in you, I never knew."

"Yeah... killing her is perhaps my greatest regret."

"So, what now, Solas?" Elgar'nan looked stern. "You changed your name... ever since you started that rebellion... three hundred years of war... The elves were destroyed by it! And then the humans came, and we could not defend our lands because there wasn't much of us left! And all for what?! Freedom? What freedom do they have now?"

"Things have gone far worse under humans than they'd ever been under the Evanuris," Solas admitted. "But how could we have known that humans would come?"

"You did not need to know that," Elgar'nan objected. "You should have stopped the war after the first hundred years or something! It was clear already then that the war was destroying the people! But no! Solas proved true to his new name!" He scowled. "I wonder how many know what it means. Solas. Pride. Personally, I preferred Fen'Harel. I like wolves."

"Have you come to torment me, Elgar'nan? Is this your vengeance?" Solas looked up, his face torn.

"Actually, no," Elgar'nan replied in a calmer tone. "I came to see whether you were indeed locked up in a prison, and it does look that way. What would bring it down? The death of Ghilan'nain and myself, no doubt? Well, Ghilan'nain is already dead... killed by your puppet!" He scowled. "And I'm next in line, of course. But your Warden will be surprised when he meets a real Old God..."

"Anders is not my puppet," Solas scowled too. "Anders is an arrogant brat who listens to no one and acts without thinking! I am here because of him! It is all his fault!"

"Is it now?" Elgar'nan laughed out loud. "I would have liked to see that! I mere human spoiling Fen'Harel's ritual! But of course I could not see it because I was imprisoned at the time!" He glared at Solas. "That previous prison wasn't as perfect as this one and Ghilan'nain and I were already making cracks in it... Then suddenly it crumbled and here we are! But the world has changed in the meantime."

"Oh yes, the world has changed..." Solas sighed. "My plan was however to restore it! To restore it for the elves!"

"And to destroy it for the humans, no doubt? Eh, Fen'Harel? Is that why the humans got up in arms and did everything they could to stop you? And even succeeded?"

"Well, yes, sacrifices had to be made," Solas nodded. "Yes, alright, the world they know would have been destroyed. Everyone except the elves would have been dead but..."

"No buts!" Elgar'nan interrupted him. "Don't you dare to rebuke my retributions! They never included destruction of a whole world!"

Solas and Elgar'nan stood there, glaring at one another.

"We're both ancient elves," Solas said softly. "And unless we work together to eliminate all humans, we will be two dead ancient elves. We aren't immortal, you know."

"Work together? I've heard that before," Elgar'nan spit. "No, Fen'Harel. You are probably right, but I cannot trust you. No."

They stood silent for a while, eyes locked, continuing the conversation in their thoughts.

"Then we shall likely both be dead," Solas finally said. "You can kill Anders, but another Warden will rise where he falls. You can kill all Wardens, and someone else will pick up their banner. They are more united than we ever were. That's why we lost."

"I see... so your Final Solution was exactly that..." Elgar'nan said softly. "Cleanse Mundus and open it to the Fade again... all races except elves will die... That's genius, Fen'Harel. Crude and cruel, but genius still... Too bad it can no longer be done."

"Oh but it can," Solas looked up. "Even if we don't work together. The Blight..."

"Ahhh..." Elgar'nan laughed softly. "Ghilan'nain's pet project... Gone entirely out of hand... It's a disease now, Fen'Harel, have you not seen it? It no longer obeys its creator... Yes, Ghilan'nain could still alter it, she thought she could control it... but no... no one controls the Blight. We should be fighting it, not letting it consume the world!" He added in anger. "The Blight does not discriminate! It consumes every living being and every race, elves included!"

"I realise it now, yes," Solas nodded.

"A bit too late, wouldn't you say?" Elgar'nan glared at him. "First you give your key to the Golden City to one ancient darkspawn lord, you help him make a giant hole in the Veil so that demons inundate Mundus, you practically push him to take over the world and merge it with the Fade... and then when the lord dares to think for himself and discovers red lyrium, you join the Inquisition and make out yourself as the hero of the day! Pah!"

"That was another miscalculation..."

"Oh, keep your excuses to yourself!" Elgar'nan spit. "Solas. The one thing that Pride can never accept is that others may have a will of their own!"

"What are you going to do, Elgar'nan?" Solas raised his voice. "You have a plan of your own, I know you! And it won't be anything short of destroying Mundus, either. So stop lecturing me!"

"I have no plan to destroy Mundus, no," Elgar'nan replied calmly. "I actually want the Veil to stay intact. The Blight will do the destruction and I want to be safe from it in the Fade."

"And?" Solas didn't believe Elgar'nan.

"And from there..." Elgar'nan smiled. "Do you remember the Forgotten Ones? They aren't exactly forgotten. Not by me, that is. I don't know yet, is the answer. I only just escaped from an eternal prison," he smirked. "The Blight cannot be controlled but it can be exploited. How and to what end, I do not yet know. I just need... to rest a while... to gather my thoughts..." He paused, watching Solas. "But there is a problem with it, isn't there? As long as I am alive, you are locked in this prison. Ah. You understand now why I do not believe that working with you would do me any good."

Solas did not reply, there was nothing more to say. The cards lay bare. Solas needed Elgar'nan dead, and therefore Elgar'nan needed Solas dead in turn, as impossible as it appeared.

...

"Ugh," Anders sat up in bed, he'd had another nightmare. He stretched for his Conscription Ale and swallowed several gulps. He shook his head and got up. Lucanis woke up too but didn't need to ask what happened - he already knew the signs. He got up and started making coffee.

"It's almost dawn, the Wardens will start waking up shortly," he said, looking out of the window.

"The Wardens are probably already awake," Anders smirked. "I bet most of them had the same dream as I - Solas and Elgar'nan talking. Too bad I couldn't catch more of what was said."

"I thought it was only the Blight that gave you nightmares," Lucanis squinted. "And we killed that Blight Mistress."

"And the nightmares lightened up a lot since then," Anders nodded. "I am not exactly sure why I'm hearing these two... hmm... it didn't seem like either of them was talking to us..."

"Perhaps they are unaware that you can hear them?"

"Perhaps... but unlikely," Anders wasn't convinced. "I'll need to talk to the others. The older Wardens, they'll know. Avernus too."

Lucanis nodded. That was Warden business and he wasn't a Warden. That was the line in the sand between Anders and him.

...

Anders walked into the room with three old Wardens - Linus, Markus and Roderik. All three of them were awake, as Anders had expected. But most other Wardens seemed to sleep peacefully.

"The dream?" Anders looked at them.

"Not everyone, it seems," Roderik looked around. "Only older Wardens... so it takes a certain level of taint... You should not have had it."

"I light up in the Fade..." Anders smirked. "Solas has a connection to me, whether he knows of it or not. It seems it was made when I interrupted his ritual... He can always locate me, and perhaps this is why I had the dream."

"Did you hear what they were saying?" Markus moved closer, he didn't want to raise his voice and disturb those that were still asleep.

"Elgar'nan wants the Veil to stay intact so that he could withdraw into the Fade and gather his thoughts and his strength," Anders summarised. "But Solas needs him dead in order to destroy the prison he's in. For this reason Elgar'nan wants Solas dead, although it is unclear how to achieve it."

"And the Blight?" Linus didn't think that was all.

"Don't know, didn't catch it," Anders shrugged. "They didn't say anything directly about it... but I have a feeling they both can manipulate it."

"Which is why we are hearing them," Linus nodded. "Which means that for us, each of them is like an Archdemon."

"So then the plan remains the same: kill Elgar'nan, then kill Solas. Two Archdemons to go," Anders agreed. "But wait... something has changed. Elgar'nan can no longer hide from us."

"Neither can an Archdemon, and yet with every Blight it is the Archdemon who comes to the Wardens and not the other way around," Roderik reminded him. "We may sense him but we cannot reach him unless he comes to us."

"It's a game of cat and mouse," Linus agreed. "We prepare and wait. What has changed is that now we know that he is coming."

[Renee]

Ah, so that's the guy in Two Worlds. Hauk himself, eh? Not sure if the guy has some other name in TW. But that's Hauk as portrayed in Two Worlds, neat.

Hauk now has an audience as he continues the story of Reesa.

Holy [censored], look at Riverhold. That's gotta be a fun place to explore, wow. And look at Grand Castle Hall! And the Mages Guild is here too, very cool.

They walked around town trying to avoid jumping down from terrace to terrace, but there wasn't always a connecting staircase, and Lena was getting tired of zigzagging left and right over the mountain stream

http://chorrol.com/forums/index.php?s=&...st&p=341328