Soundtrack:
Legendary ~ Audiograve (Vigil's Keep Theme)
Later, after assuring Oghren the pants monster wasn't real, the three of us walked around the Keep surveying the damage.
"Commander of the Grey, right?" A woman's voice asked. I turned around to see a petite blond private. "Can't say I expected you to be a Dalish."
"Is that all anyone sees?" I asked annoyed, all but growling the question.
"Two sovereigns says Realin can take her," Oghren said.
"What?"
"Oghren, shut up." As much as Oghren wanted to see it, I wasn't going to get into a brawl with her. Before my whole world changed, before the taint, I might have. If I were ten years younger. Now that I think of it, with as much trouble I got into, how did I survive my childhood?
"No offense meant, Commander. Just can't say I've met many Dalish."
"I'm sure you haven't."
"Just needed to tell you they caught a thief in the Vigil a few nights ago. Took four Wardens to capture him. Gave one of the Wardens a black eye, he did. Half joking, they said he might make a good recruit."
"Where is he now?" I wondered if he'd survived the attack.
"He's in the dungeon, Ser. I also have some letters for you. Arrived before you did." She handed me the letters before giving a salute and walking away.
I sighed and rubbed the bridge of my nose.
"Be glad you're not an Elven Mage," Anders said.
"I should, shouldn't I?" I was curious about this thief. I had the feeling he was no ordinary thief, since it took four Wardens to subdue him. They might have been onto something with their joke. I found the dungeon and went in. Oghren and Anders stayed at the door as I went to see to the prisoner.
"Ah, Commander," the guard said when I arrived. "Good thing you're here." He motioned to a man in the cell behind him.
He was sitting on the floor leaned against the wall. And he looked pretty pissed off. He had black shoulder-length hair pulled back out of his eyes. A couple of strands escaped from its binds to frame his face. He had a small patch of beard under his lips. There was something familiar about him but I just couldn't quite place what it was. He had a look of pure hate on his face when he saw me. I could see it plain as day when my emerald eyes met his grey ones.
"This one's been locked up for three nights now. Good men died while he was protected in his cell."
"Who is he?" I asked, not taking my eyes off him. The prisoner, in turn, didn't take his eyes from me.
"He refuses to give a name. All I know is he was caught poking around the estate in the middle of the night." He looked at me. "I'd say he was just a thief... but it took four Grey Wardens to capture him. You best be careful. Whoever he is, he's not an ordinary burglar, that's for sure."
"Let me talk to him."
"As you wish, Commander. I'll tell the Seneschal you came. He'll want to know what you intend to do with him." The guard saluted and left us.
I walked up to the cell and the man stood. He was shirtless, revealing a chiseled body that told me he was trained in combat. His brown pants were dirty and I saw the edge of a healing wound on his shoulder.
He rested his arms on the bars of his cell, looking me over with contempt. "Well, if it isn't the great hero." His voice had a husky tone to it. "Conqueror of the Blight and vanquisher of all evil. Aren't you supposed to be ten feet tall and lightning bolts shooting out of your eyes?"
"I'm sure the Darkspawn think so," I retorted.
He snorted. "Somehow I thought the knife ear that murdered my father would be..." He looked me up and down. "More impressive. I am Nathaniel Howe."
Which explained why he looked familiar. This was Rendon Howe's son. The son of the man that tortured his own people and tried to kill Anora in order to pin it on Eamon, Alistair, and I. Loghain's partner in crime. And the man that had slaughtered almost an entire family in Highever. We'd been told by a knight in the service of the Couslands, Ser Roland Gilmore, about Howe's attack on Highever. The man had been barely alive when he'd made it to Redcliffe and was still recovering from wounds and tortures he'd taken from Howe's men. I'd even met Fergus Cousland during the march to Denerim. While his parents, wife, and son were confirmed dead, we never did discover what happened to his younger sister. Fiona Cousland hadn't been seen or heard from since the Highever attack and neither her body nor the body of her faithful mabari were ever found. Gilmore seemed to be the only one still holding out any type of hope for her.
"My family ruled these lands before you showed up. Do you even remember my father, knife ear?"
"So you came here for revenge, Shem?" It had been some time since I'd referred to or called a human a Shem. But if he was going to call me "knife ear", the derogatory term humans used to describe Elves due to the way our ears are shaped, I was going to call him Shem, our term for humans.
"I came here...," he paused and the hate melted off his face. Now he seemed unsure of himself or his resolve. "I thought I was going to try to kill you. To lay a trap for you. Then I realized I only wanted to reclaim some of my family's things. It's all I have left." There was a sadness in him now.
"Just how much did you know about your father, Howe?"
"If you asking whether or not I knew what he was up to, the answer is no. I was squired in the Free Marches." Nathaniel sighed. "Look, I know you're a hero. You fought a war and you won. And to the victor goes the spoils, right? Whatever my father did, however, shouldn't harm my entire family." He straightened, now resting his hands where his arms had been a moment ago. "The Howes are pariahs now, those of us left. It's all thanks to you. And now you get to decide my fate. Ironic, isn't it?"
"Do you really hate me so much?"
"The Darkspawn are a menace. If it weren't for the Blight, maybe my father would never have... done what he did. But I can't do anything about them, can I? There's just you and the Grey Wardens, here in my home."
I crossed my arms. "Perhaps you should work to redeem your name."
"You're right! I'll go join King Alistair's service immediately. He'd be certain to give a Howe another chance." Two can play the sarcasm game.
"Just tell him I sent you. He'll have to trust you then." I didn't trust this Nathaniel but I wasn't sure if I should blame him for his father's deeds.
"Yes, I'm sure he'll listen to what a knife ear has to say." Nathaniel turned away and went across the cell to lean on the wall with his bare back towards me. I noticed the marks, bruises, and wounds on it and realized that the Vigil's soldiers or the Wardens had tortured him, trying to make him talk. I scoffed and shook my head at his remarks. He obviously hadn't heard that I was also the Queen of Ferelden.
The guard returned with Varel then. "I brought the Seneschal for you, Commander."
"I see you've spoken with our guest," Varel said. "Quite the handful, isn't he? Have you decided what's to be done with him?"
"Give him his family's things and let him go."
Varel looked at me surprised and then back at Nathaniel, who'd turned back around to face us. I saw recognition on his face.
"You're doing what?" Nathaniel seemed just as surprised as Varel.
"Are you sure that's wise?" Varel asked. "I must object!"
"He's not his father." I looked back at Nathaniel. "A son shouldn't have to pay for the sins of his father."
Varel nodded. "Yes, Commander."
Nathaniel was looking at me, surprise still on his face. But that hate was completely gone.
"You heard the verdict," the guard said, unlocking the cell. "Come with me so you can collect your things."
Nathaniel walked away without so much as a backward glance.
"I sure hope you know what you're doing," Varel said.
I couldn't help it. I laughed.
"That seems to be a pretty popular sentiment," I commented.
I left the dungeon and met back with Anders and Oghren and found them in the middle of an insult war. I could only shake my head. We went back out into the courtyard and I pulled out the letters I'd been given. A letter from Braylyn I could read later in my quarters. As I opened one from a noble I heard Anders whistle. I looked up to see his attention on a statue of Andraste. I'd seen enough of them to know it was her.
"Look at that," he said. I raised an eyebrow. "Was Andraste that much of a looker? Don't you think She would have been, I don't know, a barbarian?"
"Aren't all humans?" I answered with a smile.
He looked at me, grinning. "Got me there." The smile faded and he looked back up at the statue. "What would She have thought of the Circle of Magi -- forcing Mages to fight demons or be made Tranquil?" I'd met a Tranquil at the Tower of the Circle of Magi. Owain was a bit unnerving with the fact he had no emotion whatsoever. It was something I wouldn't wish on the worst Blood Mage.
"Truthfully, I don't know much about human religion." I wasn't going to tell him I'd met both the Maker and Andraste the day I nearly died after defeating the Archdemon. No one knew about that. No one alive that is. But I would bet that she wouldn't agree to the way Mages were treated, being one herself.
"Seems to me that Andraste counseled men to seek their own path to the Maker," his voice turned darker. "But the Chantry uses Her words as a reason to collar us just for being who we are, much like Tevinter did to your people before Her rise."
"I completely agree."
He looked back at me with a smile. "That's so sweet of you. I'm all a-tingle."
"My father and brother were Mages, Anders. And one of my closest friends growing up was my Clan's First."
"Your Keeper's apprentice."
I was impressed. "I take it they have books on the subject in the Tower."
"Not much, but some." He looked back at the statue. "Oh well, She's still quite a looker, for a prophet. I'm just saying."
I chuckled and we continued on. I spoke to Voldrik, a Dwarven stonemason, about doing whatever it took to repair the walls of the Keep to Dwarven standards. I decided to deal with a couple of these letters, a farm that hadn't been heard from in a couple weeks and the abduction of a Lord's daughter. Because I was the Warden Commander and we'd taken over Vigil's Keep, the people seemed to see me as the Arlessa of Amaranthine as well. At least they would until they saw that I was indeed Dalish.
"So... Mage, huh?" Oghren suddenly said. "What's it like?"
"To have all this power at my fingertips?"
"No. To always have to wear a skirt?" The Dwarf laughed. I rolled my eyes and waited to hear what crazy comeback Anders would think of.
"Oh, you don't know the story behind the robes?" Oh, this was going to be good. "You know how strict things are in the Circle, right? Of course, you do. Well, the robes make quick trysts in the corner easy. No laces or buttons. You're done before the Templars catch on."
"Really?" I was trying not to laugh. It was actually believable.
"Just ask anyone."
~~~
We arrived at the farm to see it overrun with Darkspawn and the family there slaughtered. We'd arrived too late, but killed every Darkspawn there. As Oghren and Anders couldn't sense Darkspawn yet, they had to rely on me to pinpoint where they were hiding. After that, we went to deal with the bandits holding the lord's daughter hostage. I followed the directions and found myself near some ruins where the only way to reach them was across a wooden bridge that swayed in the breeze. I walked across, used to crossing things that weren't exactly safe to walk across. The others hesitated a moment before following me.
"Another step," a gruff voice said. "And poor Lady Eileen dies. Where's Lord Bensley? The deal was he'd give us the money himself, not his knife-eared bitch."
Tristan growled.
"That's harsh," Anders quipped. And he obviously underestimated this knife-eared bitch.
"You won't see a single sovereign until I see the girl," I said.
"Sparrow, show her."
The man left and returned a moment later with a terrified teenaged girl.
"Hand over the gold. Now."
"Send over the girl first. Then I'll give you the money."
"Sparrow, send her over."
Sparrow pushed the girl and she ran towards us. Anders immediately pushed her behind him.
"The money. Now."
I smiled. Why were bandits such idiots? "The girl was the only thing keeping you alive." I drew my bow and nocked an arrow.
"Defend yourselves, men!"
The arrow hit him square between the eyes. I replaced my bow and drew my swords. "Keep her behind you, Anders."
"Of course, Commander."
Oghren, Tristan, and I rushed forward, cutting down anyone idiot enough to attack us with Anders sending bolts of magic to protect us. After they were all dead, he came towards us to check if we had any wounds.
"Thank the Maker!" Eileen said. "I thought they were going to kill me! I will inform my father of your timely rescue!"
"Anders, make sure she gets home. Tristan, go with him."
Tristan barked and nudged Anders. They left and Oghren and I returned to the Keep.