Freely We Serve (a Dragon Age fanfiction)

Arrival

As they neared Denerim, the lands were darkened, the plants dying, the very air seeming to thicken with black taint. Judith's armies reacted with despair, anger, and a significant amount of nausea, which did nothing to improve the air.

As she hurried along toward the city, the anxiety to know what was happening there pumped through Judith's body in heavy pulses. She wished desperately for Morrigan's ability to become a bird and fly—why had she never taken lessons in shape-shifting? Why had Morrigan insisted on staying in Denerim? It seemed wrong to Judith, raising all the secret doubts about Morrigan she'd had from the beginning. If only she knew what was happening!

When they caught their first sight of the splintered gates of Denerim, hacked to pieces and strewn over the ground amongst great mounds of darkspawn corpses, there was a collective falter. That the gates might fall had been a possibility, but none of them had believed it could—or would—really happen.

Coming nearer to the gates, Judith was heartened to find that the corpses were all those of darkspawn, and pride swelled in her. She didn't need anyone to tell her that if the gates had been held long enough for darkspawn to pile up before them in these numbers, Daniel had done it. She hoped that he'd had the good sense to get away from the gates before they fell.

Judith considered making a speech, but decided now wasn't the time. "Ferelden!" she shouted.

Cheering, the troops surged ahead as one. Darkspawn emerged from the gates to meet them, and the two forces came together with a ring of metal on metal.

"Get yer backs into it!" Oghren shouted at them. "We'll slaughter every last one o' the nug-lickers!"

Convinced that Oghren had things well in hand at the gates, Judith fought her way through the mass into the city, Leliana and the mabari at her side. Judith could feel the presence of other Grey Wardens, a sweeter hum over the buzz of the darkspawn. And above that, the sharp tug of the Archdemon, growing stronger as she moved past the gates. As they entered the city, Judith and Leliana looked around in vain for any of the companions they'd left behind.

Then there was a cheer, and fighters in grimy, battle-stained, scarred armor, began emerging from buildings and alleys. "Took yer sweet time," one growled as he jogged past, throwing himself into the fray.

"Grey Warden," rasped a voice, and Judith's jaw dropped open as she recognized the weather-beaten features and fierce scowl of Loghain Mac Tir.

"What are you doing here?" she asked without preamble.

A humorless smile briefly tightened his mouth. "The King of Ferelden let me loose to defend the gates."

"He did WHAT?" Judith and Leliana spoke together.

Loghain nodded. "We held them off as long as we could. Maric's bastard and that pet guardsman of yours did a good job," he said grudgingly. "Someone's got a good head on their shoulders. Now, if you'll excuse me." He moved off, gathering up small knots of men, rallying and forming them into units.

"Alistair let him out?" Judith said to Leliana as they hurried through the streets.

Leliana shrugged helplessly. "It seems unbelievable, but ..." her cheeks colored, "I'd be so proud of him."

"Me, too. Let's find him and tell him so!" And Judith followed the pull of her blood into the depths of the city.

A shadow fell over the city as they ran, and Judith felt a bone-deep chill as the Archdemon drew nearer. She looked up into the sky, seeing the same blue-black shining scales and giant cruel mouth she'd seen in the Dead Trenches, far below Orzammar. The shadow of the wings was cold and dark as the dragon passed over them. Judith repressed the urge to duck, to hide like a rabbit from a hawk, and wait until it had passed.

On top of the palace tower, she could make out a figure—smaller than Alistair, she noted with relief—pacing restlessly as the Archdemon came closer. When the giant dragon flew by, Riordan ran across the tower, launching himself into the air, landing firmly on the dragon's back. Leliana clutched fearfully at Judith's arm. A piercing shriek of pain from the Archdemon caught the ear of every person in the city. Judith couldn't see what Riordan was doing, but the Archdemon jerked and twisted, bucking violently. Riordan was unseated as the dragon banked sharply, and he slid down the huge blackened wing. And then he was loose in the air, flailing as he fell, while the Archdemon flew away, drops of blackened blood splattering through the air from its injured wing. Judith closed her eyes, not wanting to see the other Grey Warden falling through the sky, dreading the inevitable wet thud as he hit the ground.

It never came.

"Look!" Leliana said urgently, shaking Judith's arm.

Opening her eyes, Judith looked up. Riordan swung below the surface of the tower, smashing into the stones. A cry of pain reached Judith. She watched, her heart in her throat, as Riordan pulled himself hand over hand up some kind of rope, one leg dangling uselessly.

As Riordan neared the platform of the tower, a deeply tanned face looked over the edge. "You look most delicious flying through the air, my bewitching Warden."

"And you swing a wicked rope," Riordan answered, taking the hand that was held down to him. Zev pulled him the rest of the way up, Riordan groaning in pain as his leg had to bear some of his weight. "You saved my life," he said, gripping the assassin's shoulder.

"I believe that puts you in my debt," Zev purred. "Rest assured, I will expect to be repaid."

Riordan grinned. "Go help the other Grey Wardens finish what I could not while I get my leg healed. Proper repayment requires the use of both of them."