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Blood Promise	By : Hikari86 Category: +A through F > Dragon Age (all) > Dragon Age (all) Views: 4556 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: Bioware owns everything Dragon Age. I claim no ownership and make no money/profit.

Chapter List
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Journey in the Deep

It had been nothing but darkness for nearly a week now, maybe two. Jordan couldn't really tell. She had lost all track of time when they entered the darkness and was swallowed in by the depths of the Deep Roads. She couldn't tell what time of day it was, or even what direction they were going. She was completely lost, having to fully rely on Bartrand and the other dwarves who had what they called 'stone sense.' It made her feel useless, as during their trip so far they hadn't run into any darkspawn. They had Anders to thank for that. He would alert Bartrand to any darkspawn he felt that were near. If they were right ahead of them, Jordan would get excited, eager to finally be able to do something, but always Bartrand and Anders would look over the maps and find a different route that would lead them away from the darkspawn but still keep them on their course. It was beginning to drive her mad with boredom.
She wasn't the only one, however, who felt useless. Fenris and Varric didn't have much to do either. They didn't seem to mind, though. Most of the time the two of them could be found playing cards together whenever the expedition set up camp. Fenris also seemed to find the Deep Roads fascinating. Jordan had caught him more than once staring at some of the ruins they encountered. Mostly it was at the carvings in the walls and statutes. He peered at them as if he was trying to understand what they meant. Jordan had tried to ask him once what he thought of them, but he had acted as if he had no idea what she was talking about.
The trip, although mostly uneventful, did have its good moments. Jordan couldn't really complain too much, considering Anders was there, even if he was busy most of the time feeling for darkspawn and occasionally healing any workers that might have gotten hurt. Most times they had camped, he would have a few workers come to him to see if they had contracted the blight. So far, their expedition had been fortunate, and that none of the participants had come into direct contact with the foul corruption that sometimes seemed to line the walls of the tunnels like a thick mold. Anders would always check Jordan every night, however, as well as Varric. Jordan figured he would have probably checked Fenris as well, but the elf never let him touch him, not even to heal any wounds he might have received. It made Jordan worry about Fenris a little, considering one of his wounds—even if it was just nothing but a minor cut—could easily get infected in the Deep Roads, and could easily allow taint to enter his body. Fenris didn't seem to care, however, and never did Anders.
Although Bartrand was the leader of the expedition, and the one who chose which course they would take when they came across cross sections, Jordan noticed Bodahn seemed to have as much authority as he did. The merchant was in charge of all of the supplies and distributed them out evenly every time they camped. He was fair with the way he handled things, and was much nicer than Bartrand, who liked to yell and even punch the occasional worker who didn't preform his job to Bartrand's standards. Jordan mostly stayed out of the way. Even if she was Bartrand's partner in this expedition, she wasn't going to challenge his authority, or even try to take charge of anything.
Sandal proved to be a nice distraction at times. Jordan learned much about him and Bodahn on the journey. Sandal actually wasn't Bodahn's biological son. Bodahn had found him as a baby in the Deep Roads, abandoned, cold and hungry. Feeling sorry for the little boy, Bodahn took the boy in and raised him as his own. Sandal was an interesting dawrf—a savant, Bodahn had called him. One that had a hard time interacting with others, he usually shied away from the workers he didn't know very well, and stayed clear of Bartrand all together. Yet with Jordan, he seemed to grow attached, following her on occasion and admiring Edge, which Jordan knew was probably due to the enchantment inside the blade. Enchanting was also something he was very skilled at, so good in fact, that Anders had even claimed he was better than the tranquil mages. Jordan also learned very quickly that even though Sandal was a boy of few words, enchantment seemed to be his favorite.
“Enchantment?” Sandal said as he stared at Jordan, smiling up at her in his usual way.
“No thanks, Sandal,” Jordan said as she bent down to his level. “I'm good right now.”
He pointed at her shoulder, and Jordan knew he was really pointing at Edge. “More enchantment.”
She had to smile at this. It was one of the things he was constantly trying to do, add something to her dagger. If it wasn't for the fact she was afraid he might mess up what her father had already placed on the blade, she might have let him. “No.”
This made him frown and pout out his lip.
“How about this,” Jordan said as she placed both her hands on his shoulders. “If you can find an enchantment that will match perfectly with what I already have, then I'll let you do it. Is that okay?”
Sandal opened his mouth wide in a big smile and nodded his head up and down. “Special enchantment for special lady.”
“If any one can find it, I know you can.” Jordan squeezed his shoulders as she stood. Sandal then ran off, toward his father as he called for him.
Jordan sighed as she began making her way towards the fire ring. On the way, she passed Fenris and Varric as they played Wicked Grace by the light of two lanterns. They were in a part of the Deep Roads that was dark, their only light source what they could make themselves. Sitting next to the fire, she spotted Anders, alone as he tossed in a small fireball to keep the fire going. He then looked up and saw her, nodding as he noticed her approach. As she came closer to him, she also passed a group of workers, their eyes following her all the way.
“I don't like how they stare at you,” said Anders when Jordan finally joined him He peered over at some of the workers, staring with piercing, angry eyes, making them avert their own lustful ones from her. “It's not right, just because you're the only woman traveling with us.”
Jordan sat herself next to him, putting her hands out to collect warmth from the fire. She had also noticed the stares from the workers, but knew nothing would ever come of it. They not only knew she was off-limits, but they also knew how deadly she could be. Edge and Ripper were on her at all times, and she usually never left either Varric, Fenris, or Anders's side. Not because she feared the workers, but because she really didn't want to be left in the Deep Roads alone. There were other scary things in those tunnels besides darkspawn, and the thing that scared Jordan the most was getting lost all by herself.
“Ignore them,” Jordan said as she rubbed her hands together. “I do. It's not like they're going to do anything anyway.”
Anders stared at her. “You don't hear what they whisper at night. How they plan on raiding your tent when you're sleeping and basically gang raping you.” He turned to the fire. “It makes me sick.”
“I'm sure it's just talk, but... if you're so worried, maybe I'd be safer sleeping in your tent,” Jordan said, smiling at him.
Anders appeared to actually be considering it before he shook his head. “No, I think just putting your tent closer to mine should be fine. I can watch you better that way.”
“What about when you sleep? Can't watch me then.”
“I don't think that will be a problem. I haven't been sleeping very well anyway.”
“Oh?” It was hard to tell in the dull light, but Jordan could almost detect the lines of fatigue under his eyes. “Why's that?”
“Because I'm a Grey Warden,” he smiled softly at her. “Being one, I'm connected to the taint and can 'hear' the darkspawn. They're like constant little whispers in my mind, always there and hard to ignore. Up on the surface they were bearable and were starting to go away. But down here... they're amplified.”
“So you hear voices in your head? Besides Justice.”
“If you want to call them that.”
“Do they tell you to do things? Like to light stuff on fire?”
Anders glared at her but it was teasing. “They don't tell me anything because I can't understand them. It's just whisperings of a... language of sorts the darkspawn use to communicate. But that's not all there is. There's also a kind of... hum that accompanies them. It's like a... song. Sweet and inviting.” Anders had to shake his head. “It drives Justice almost to insanity.”
“I'm sure it would.” Jordan studied him for a moment, seeing as his eyes had locked themselves on the fire. The reflection of the flames dancing in his brown eyes. She could tell he was troubled. “I'm... sorry. If I knew it was going to be this hard for you...”
“Don't be,” he said staring at her again. “You didn't force me down here, I chose to come on my own.”
“Yeah, I've been meaning to ask you about that. Why did you decide to come?”
Anders stayed silent for a moment, still gazing at her. “Because I... I didn't want you... I just thought it was the best thing to do. As you can tell, with me being here, the expedition hasn't suffered any major casualties yet from darkspawn attacks.”
“That's true,” Jordan said softly. “But what do you plan on doing if one of us comes to you with taint in our blood?”
“That... I'm not sure about. There's no cure for blight, expect to become a Grey Warden, and I don't really know how to do a Joining.”
“You don't know how?”
“Well, I do, but it's not like I can just preform one here.” Anders looked back at the fire. “I don't have everything I need, and it's not really a guarantee anyway.”
Jordan also looked to the fire, knowing what he meant. One heard rumors about the Grey Wardens, a big one being that not all their recruits survived becoming one. Apparently it was true. It made her think about what would happen if she contracted blight. There was really only one thing that could be done if becoming a Grey Warden wasn't an option. Death.
“If I become tainted, I want you to kill me,” Jordan said not looking away from the fire. “Don't let me suffer.” She could see in the corner of her eye Anders suddenly staring at her. Whether there was shock on his face or not, she couldn't tell.
“I'll do what I need to,” he said. “But you make sure you don't get tainted.”
Jordan took her eyes from the fire and smiled at him. “As long as you're by my side, then I know I won't.”
Anders softly smiled back. “Are you in need of anything at the moment?”
“Not really. Just wanted to get warm, is all.”
“Alright, then here.” He stood and took off his leather coat, and draped it across her shoulders. “I'll go set up our tents for the night.”
“Thanks.” Jordan hugged his coat tighter around her shoulders as she watched him round the fire and make his way over where the tents were placed. He passed Varric and Fenris on the way, both of them having stopped their game and peering over at Jordan. Jordan caught Fenris's eyes, but he quickly averted them away. When she looked over at Varric, she saw a mischievous little smirk on his face. She glared at him, knowing he was more than likely concocting an over the top story for what he just witnessed. She then laughed when he winked at her. Whatever he was planning, she knew it was going to be interesting.
***
They made a sudden stop, one that Bartrand hadn't scheduled and one he wasn't very happy about. “What's going on?” he yelled at one of the workers who slowly approached him.
The worker was a dwarf, frightened as he stood in front of Bartrand. “There's a collapse up ahead that we can't move,” he said, casting his eyes down. He, along with a few others, had gone up ahead in the tunnels. Their job was to find any blockages and clear them before the carts arrived. So far, all the blockages they came across were easily able to be removed.
“What do you mean you can't move it?”
“The rubble is shifting as we move it around,” the dwarf explained, still looking toward the ground. “We're afraid it'll fall on us and completely block the way.”
Bartrand grumbled, his face turning red from anger. “Is there no way around?”
“There are... side passages.” The dwarf finally looked up at Bartrand's face. He swallowed hard. “But they're too dangerous.”
Bartrand stared at him for a moment before punching the dwarf square in the jaw. “Useless!” he screamed. “What am I paying you blighters for?” He glared down at the worker who held his cheek and scooted away. Bartrand then looked around at the whole expedition, seeing everyone staring at him. “Sod. Set up camp!” he yelled. Everyone quickly went to work.
“Something unexpected happening?” Jordan asked, although she kept herself well away from Bartrand's reach.
“Sodding Deep Roads,” the dwarf cursed. “This is not what I needed. Who knows how long it'll take those idiots to clear the path!”
“Maybe it would be best if we did take the side passage,” said Varric. “Then we wouldn't have to wait.”
“You think I'm an idiot, Varric?” Bartrand asked, glaring at his brother. “Those passages are too dangerous.”
“I'd have to agree with him,” said Anders. “I can feel darkspawn that way.”
“And what's wrong with us going down and clearing them, huh?” Jordan asked as she looked at both Bartrand and Anders. “Isn't that the reason why you brought me in the first place?”
“Hawke does have a point,” said Varric. “If you stay here and continue to clear the blockage, then the four of us will go down the side passage and take a look and see if we can find a faster way around. If we come running back, screaming, you'll know staying put was the right decision.”
“Fine, fine!” Bartrand blurted, throwing up his hands. “Go ahead and find a way around. But do it quickly!”
“Thank the Maker!” Jordan heaved. “Finally, I get to do something exciting!”
“You mean just being down here isn't exciting enough?” Varric laughed.
“Hardly.” Jordan looked to make sure both Anders and Fenris were still with her. “You two ready to have some fun?”
“I wouldn't call it fun,” said Fenris. “But it should prove more interesting than what we've been doing so far.”
“There's no way of talking you out of it?” Anders asked Jordan.
Jordan shook her head. “Nope.”
He sighed. “Lead the way, then. I'll warn us when darkspawn are close.”
Jordan took them through the workers who were setting up camp. She followed down the tunnel, seeing the blockage ahead of her and realizing why the workers were so uncertain about taking it down. The rubble appeared unstable, as if it were to collapse even more at any minute. Even moving the smallest stone may dislodge the entire pile, and have it come tumbling down upon the misfortunate workers who would be trying to move it.
To the right of the blockage was an opening in the wall, wide and crumbling. It was an opening that had been made by the darkspawn, creating their own tunnels and connecting them outside of the dwarven roads.
“Sandal! Sandal, where are you?” Bodahn ran past Jordan, only to stop when he noticed which way she was heading. “Mistress Hawke!”
“Bodahn, what's wrong?” Jordan asked.
“It's my boy,” he heaved. “Er... I hate to add to your burdens, my friends, but I fear I must. I fear my boy, Sandal, wandered off. He's somewhere in those passages, right now! I beg you, keep an eye out for him. He just... doesn't understand danger like he should.”
“Why would he wander off like that?”
“He does that sometimes. Normally I can keep a better eye on him, but there was something I had to deal with. Oh, I hope he'll be all right. I know he's sturdier than he looks, and if he has one of his enchantments with him, then I believe he should be fine... But I still worry about him. So, please, if you could just lookout for him and send him back if you do find him.”
“We'll keep an eye out for him. I'm sure he couldn't have gotten too far.”
“Thank you, Mistress Hawke,” Bodahn bowed. “I appreciate this.” He then went off, toward the carts, but still looking worried.
“I hope we find him alive and unharmed,” said Anders. “Because the corruption is thick that way.” He stared over at the side passage.
“Then let's not waste anymore time,” Jordan smiled. “Onward!”
The side passage they took was slightly different than the true Deep Roads. Some places were made of more natural formations, caverns of rock carved by long gone underground rivers. Others showed life had once lived in these tunnels, but it was the life of hard work and labor. Jordan realized as she looked down into a pit that they were walking through an old dwarven mine.
“Think they were digging for lyrium or something like that?” she said.
“Who knows,” said Varric as he examined the same pit. “Lyrium would be my best guess.”
“Do you know anything about your own kind, Varric?” Jordan asked as she stared at the dwarf.
“I know things about my own kind,” Varric smirked. “But you didn't ask about them. You asked about ancient dwarves who used to live here and dug up stuff. I don't know a thing about them.”
“Ha!” Jordan laughed as she turned away from the pit. She then became serious when she saw Anders standing still and looking ahead at the next area they would explore.
“Do you sense something, mage?” Fenris asked before she could.
“They're right ahead of us,” Anders spoke. “Several of them. And—shit.” Anders's face grew hard as he grabbed his staff.
“What?” said Jordan, confused by his behavior.
“They've sensed me.” He turned to Jordan, disquiet in his eyes. “Look out!”
Jordan moved just as a black arrow whizzed past her head. She stared over at the tunnel entrance, seeing a hurlock as he loaded another arrow on his bow. More came pouring out from behind him, brandishing their weapons and screaming their war cries. Jordan moved quick, taking out both Edge and Ripper as she ran right at the approaching darkspawn. A bolt flew past her head, sinking into the skull of the hurlock that had shot an arrow at her from before. He fell and Jordan leaped over his body, striking the shield of another hurlock. She spun, avoiding the rusted sword as the hurlock brought it down. Edge sliced across the darkspawn's side. Ripper plunged into the back of its neck. The hurlock went down, only to be replaced by another. Then another. Jordan moved fast, avoiding sharp blades and bashing shields as she cut her way through the darkspawn ranks.
More bolts went flying through the air from Varric. Many hit their targets, ripping through darkspawn throats and crippling limbs that held weapons. Jordan made quick work of these, striking them as hard and as fast as lightning.
A darkspawn nearly caught her, raising its sword to swing down on her shoulder, but its head was cut clean off before it could make the blow. Fenris then pushed the body to the ground before striking at another hurlock that screeched at him. His sword was already shinny from darkspawn blood as he carved his way through, taking out several darkspawn at once with each swing. He ran to Jordan's side, taking out another hurlock that almost nicked her in the side.
“Hawke, watch yourself!” he yelled at her.
“I know you're there!” she yelled back at him. Her smile was immense as she jabbed Edge into a darkspawn throat, then ripped it out. Blood squirted out from the wound, but she deftly avoided it.
“Jordan!” Anders hollered from afar. He sent out a spell that froze a hurlock in place before then shattering it to pieces with a stone fist.
“Anders!” Jordan shouted back, not quite sure what he was calling her for. She sliced a hurlock's throat open then spun and struck a second in the eye. Next to her, Fenris cut the abdomen of a third open before making his way to a fourth and taking out its legs.
“Watch it--” Something went fast in the air, hitting Anders in the arm, making him drop his staff. Jordan peered to see what it was that he was trying to warn her about, and what had hit him. A darkspawn emissary stood back from the rest of the group. Its wicked staff raised, while it gave her a toothy grin. She could already feel the magic pulsing as it formed a black ball of energy between its hands. The emissary was aiming for Anders again, who was still trying to recover from the first attack. Jordan wasn't going to let that attack leave the emissary's hands. She sprinted forth, straight toward the mage darkspawn, but she never reached it. Something smacked her side and she went skidding to the floor, stopping short from a pile of sharp rocks. When she looked up to see what hit her, she saw a large darkspawn, a hurlock larger and bulkier than its counterparts. It glared down at her and held up both its shield and sword in a challenging stance.
The black bolt then passed by and Jordan saw as it hit Anders again, but this time did nothing as it hit his protective shield. He had his staff back in hand and aimed at the emissary, sending out a deadly electrically charge but only barely missing as the emissary side-stepped right at the last moment. They became locked in a lethal duel, sending spell after spell at each other.
Jordan quickly rolled out of the way as the alpha hurlock slammed its sword down where she had been. The darkspawn grunted from missing and went after her, slamming and kicking as it chased her across the ground. Jordan sprang to her feet, ducking the swing from its shield and rolled between the hurlock's legs. Turing swiftly around, she planted both Edge and Ripper in the alpha's back. The darkspawn roared, then spun itself fully around. Jordan went flying, losing the grip on her daggers as she went tumbling back to the floor. Seeing her weaponless now, the alpha went back to slamming his shield down on where she was. Jordan quickly moved, avoiding the darkspawn's blows and trying to get behind it to reclaim her daggers. The hurlock kept spinning with her, never letting her get behind before it finally caught up with her and smacked her in the back with its shield. Jordan went back down again, her head spinning from the blow.
“Hawke!” Varric cried, sounding distant and distorted.
Jordan twisted herself to look up and see the hurlock raising its sword to bring it down on her. It drove down but was stopped when Fenris placed himself in between the two. His blade caught the hurlock's own sword. He then flung it forward, pushing the alpha back. Fenris struck at it, hitting sword and shield as he pushed the darkspawn further backwards. Jordan briskly recovered herself, getting on her feet and running behind the hurlock. As Fenris hit it across the chest, Jordan leaped on its back and gripped both her daggers. In one, perfectly timed move, she pushed with her feet, ripping Edge and Ripper out while Fenris sliced into the alpha's neck. A bolt from Varric had also made its way into one of the hurlock's eyes, taking it down for good.
Jordan's breathing was labored as she stood and observed the battle ground. Dead darkspawn were everywhere, including the emissary that had finally succumbed to one of Anders's spells.
“Is everyone all right?” Anders asked as he and Varric joined with Fenris and Jordan. “Does anyone need healing?”
“No, nothing broken, I don't think,” said Jordan. “Although give me a moment. Still got the adrenaline pumping.”
Anders went and checked her anyway, finding she did have a few broken ribs that she couldn't feel yet. Nothing else major, and to his relief, she was still taint free. He then looked to both Varric and Fenris.
“I'm good,” said Varric. “None of the darkspawn got close enough thanks to Bianca.”
“I'm fine, mage,” Fenris waved off. “Don't even start acting like you care.”
“Fenris,” Jordan said as she stared at the elf. “You should let him check you out.”
“I said I'm fine.”
“It's all right,” Anders said as he glared at Fenris. “I can tell he'll be okay. And if not, maybe it's for the better.”
“You would love that, wouldn't you?” Fenris scolded.
“Maybe next time I should just throw you to the darkspawn.” Fenris and Anders locked eyes to each other, and gave the other dirty looks.
“Enough,” Jordan said, pushing the two away from each other. “We did not come down here so you two could glare at one another. Now Anders, are there anymore darkspawn ahead?”
Anders took his eyes from Fenris and stared down the tunnel. “I... That's weird.”
“What's weird?”
“There were darkspawn ahead, but now... they're gone. Vanished. Not even moved farther away.”
“Shall we go and investigate?” They all nodded and followed Jordan as she lead them through the tunnels. When they got to another open area, Jordan nearly tripped over a darkspawn corpse. One that had just been recently killed. As they stopped to survey the area, they found a whole field of darkspawn corpses, and one ogre frozen in place. Standing next to the ogre, and in the middle of the field, was Sandal.
“Hello,” he smiled at them.
“Well I'll be a nug's uncle,” said Varric as they made their way over to him. “Isn't that Bodahn's boy?”
“It is,” answered Jordan. “Amazing.”
“I'd say more like dumb luck,” said Anders as he stared around at the darkspawn corpses himself, then up at the ogre which appeared to be frozen in an attack position.
Jordan went right to Sandal and bent down to him. “Did you really kill all of them?” she asked. “I'd really like to know how you did all this.”
Sandal looked to each side of the room before looking back at her. “Boom.”
“Must have been a big one,” Jordan chuckled. “And that?” She gestured to the frozen ogre.
“Not enchantment.”
“Right. I'm not sure what that means, but okay. Hey, do you think you can make it back to your father okay? He's worried about you.”
Sandal nodded his head before taking off back down the tunnel. Jordan stood and peered at him before staring back at the ogre.
“Smart boy,” Varric mused.
“More like a scary one,” said Fenris.
“Very interesting nonetheless,” Jordan said as she pondered at the ogre.
“Maybe we should move on,” Varric suggested. “I would rather not find out if that ogre can come back to life. Besides, we need to still find a way past that blockage.”
“Right,” Jordan nodded. “Anders, what's going on up ahead?”
“Nothing at the moment,” he breathed.
“Then let's keep moving.” Jordan went around the ogre, and headed more down the tunnel.
***
“It's odd,” Anders questioned to himself as they continued down the tunnel.
“Something bothering you?” Jordan asked.
“Not... much. I'm just wondering where all the genlocks are. So far all we've faced are hurlocks. Hmm. Maybe this region of the Deep Roads doesn't have any dwarven broodmothers. Doesn't seem right, though.”
“Dwarven broodmothers? Or maybe I should start with: what's a broodmother?”
“It's a creature that breeds darkspawn. It's where they come from. Nasty things too, ugly beyond reason. And not a darkspawn you would really want to face.”
“Okay, so if they're what breed darkspawn, how do they come into being? You said... dwarven?”
Anders looked over at her, his eyes searching. “They're created from... women.”
Jordan raised an eyebrow at him. “Okay...?”
Anders sighed. “It's what happens when darkspawn capture women. Instead of killing them, they make them into broodmothers. The process is... unsettling. You really don't want the details.”
“And the dwarven part?” Varric asked, having been listening along with Jordan.
“Different races make different types of darkspawn,” Anders explained. “Dwarven women become broodmothers who breed genlocks. Humans breed hurlocks. Elves breed shrieks. And Qunari breed ogres.”
“Qunari?” said Jordan. “You mean female Qunari actually exist?”
“Of course they exist,” said Fenris. “Did you really think they were a race of only men?”
“Considering I've never seen a female Qunari before... yes.”
Fenris rolled his eyes. “The women of the Qun do not leave because they cannot become soldiers. Only soldiers leave to explore the world.”
“Sucks to be a woman in the Qun, then. Huh, but Ketojan said my role wouldn't change much if I did convert. What would that mean?”
“Perhaps they would not see you as a woman. You would be considered genderless, and able to take on the role only reserved for men.”
“That doesn't make any sense.” Jordan shook her head. “Sure my breasts are small when you compare them to other human women—especially Isabela's—but I'm still a woman.”
“Breasts do not make a woman.”
“I beg to differ.”
Fenris sighed. “The Qunari do not determine a persons gender by whether or not they have breasts.”
“So it's a between the legs thing?”
“No, it's... hard to explain.”
“Apparently the entire Qun is hard to explain,” Jordan moaned. “You know, I'm not stupid. I might actually be able to understand if people would take the time to try and tell me!”
“No, you're not stupid,” Fenris agreed. “It's just hard because I'm not sure I even understand it myself. I only learned second-hand from Danarius. Also... your breasts aren't as small as you may think.”
Jordan stared at him, questioning. “Are you saying you've been staring at them?”
“No, I have not!” Fenris shot back. “I'm just saying they're larger than elven ones.”
“But the only way to compare them would be to stare,” Anders added, sounding defensive.
“I do not stare.” Fenris put his eyes forward. “Perhaps we should find another topic?”
Jordan grinned, knowing Fenris had been embarrassed, but he would never admit it. Nor would he ever admit that he might have been looking. Jordan looked down at her own chest. Sure her breasts might have been small, the smallest of all her human friends, including Bethany and Aveline, but she was proud of them. Fenris was right about one thing, at least. She was still bigger than Merrill.
As they continued to explore the tunnels, silence had fallen between them. Jordan wasn't sure if it was because they were still embarrassed from their previous conversation, or if they didn't have anything more to talk about. Either way, she was grateful for the silence, as it gave her time to look about the tunnels they were traveling. They came into areas that looked less like mines and more like areas where dwarves used to live. They passed buildings, crumbling and covered in corruption, but Jordan suspected that if the corruption was cleared, and a few hours of work were placed into them, the buildings could still be livable. It just showed the wonder of dwarven masonry. That even abandoned after years, the structures still stood firm. Waiting for the day when they would be cleaned and lived in again.
Coming into a large chamber, Jordan stopped to look around. There was light coming through from the high ceiling. It was bright sun rays, and they made Jordan cheerful as she stepped into one to feel the warmth. “We must be closer to the surface than I thought.”
“It's possible,” said Anders as he also put his hand in the ray. “But the sun can still penetrate down here even from thousands of feet. There's probably a large cavern above us.”
Jordan basked in the sunlight a few seconds longer before Varric called her over.
“Hawke, I think we found our way around the blockage.” He pointed to a doorway, and when Jordan peered through, she saw it lead back to a part of the Deep Roads that looked similar to what they had been traveling through with the expedition.
“Perfect,” said Jordan. “Think we should go back and tell Bartrand?”
“Not unless you want to try and clear the blockage from this side.”
Jordan grinned. “I think we're good. Let's go back. All the darkspawn are taken care of in this area, right Anders?”
“I don't feel any,” Anders agreed. “So the expedition should make it through here just fine.”
“Right. Now--” Jordan stopped when she saw the rays of sunlight flicker. Something then moved in the corner of her eye and she stared up at the ceiling. She couldn't make it out, but she thought she saw something sitting in the shadows, staring down at them. “Do you guys see that?” She pointed to where she was looking, and everyone turned to see what she was talking about. Just as she did, the thing in the ceiling moved. Glowing eyes pierced as a long neck came out from the shadows, followed by wings and a body. The creature flew down and landed in front of them, blocking their way from going back the way they came. It roared, showing sharp teeth and sending a fireball hurtling towards them. They all leaped out of the way, the fireball missing them, as they went around to attack the dragon.
It was probably stupid to fight a dragon, even if it wasn't a full high dragon, it was still large and able to swallow any of them whole if it was able to get its teeth around any of them. But they needed to get rid of it, especially if this was its home, and they needed to get the expedition through here.
Jordan was already speeding around the dragon's legs, rolling under its tail, and flinging herself to the other side. Ripper was deflected by the dragon's scales as Jordan tried to plunge her daggers in the creature's hind leg. Edge, however, went right between two scales, sinking in and cutting deep. The dragon roared, turning itself away from Anders and Varric and snapping its jaws at Jordan. In its turn, Jordan was able to rip Edge out. She then ducked under the dragon's belly, running low to the other side.
Losing its prey, the dragon whirled around, finding Fenris and snapping down on him. He moved then smacked his sword against the dragon's snout. The creature sneezed from the blow, then went to its hind legs and swatted at him with its front claws. Fenris blocked one clawed hand with his sword, but was hit with the other, sending him flying back. The dragon went after him, but was distracted by many hits from bolts both magical and steel. It turned its attention to both Anders and Varric, roaring and running towards them in a frenzy. The dragon spreed its wings, sending out a huge gust that knocked Varric to the ground. Anders took a step forward and released an icy blast from his staff. The ice coated across the dragon's front, stopping its movements and trapping its head. Jordan with her feet beating hard, leaped onto the dragon's side and dug both Edge and Ripper right into the dragon's joint, connecting its wing to its body. With a terrifying roar, the dragon blasted fire from its jaws, sending it all over the chamber. Jordan made it underneath the dragon before the fires could get to her, but not without the tip of her ponytail being singed off.
“Jordan, get out of there!” Anders yelled.
The dragon above her was starting to get free, shaking off the melting ice. With another loud roar, something then answered it. A chirping, that when Jordan looked to find its source, discovered several smaller dragons running towards them. They were dragonlings, baby dragons and looking just as deadly as their mother.
Acting fast, Jordan moved herself out from under the mother, just before a large claw could come down on her. She flipped forward as the dragon clutched its jaws, almost catching her foot. Jordan then had to roll again to avoid a dragonling, clawing at her back and nipping at her ankles. She slashed Ripper across one of their throats, killing it instantly. Another caught her on the leg, ripping her pants and drawing blood. Jordan kicked the dragonling in the head, then cut the back of its neck with Edge. More dragonlings surrounded her, nipping and biting and clawing. She worked fast to kill all she could, but they almost seemed never ending.
“Hawke! Look out!”
Jordan stabbed one of the dragonlings in the chest as she heard Varric's warning. She looked up just in time to see the mother dragon's teeth as they cascaded toward her. She didn't have time to move, not even if she went fast enough in either direction. Those teeth would have her for sure.
“Hawke, move!” Fenris grabbed her collar, and in one quick movement, tossed Jordan into the air.
It took some time for Jordan to realize she was flying, high above the ground as she stared down upon it, seeing it approach her faster and faster. She barely had time to prepare for the impact, hitting the ground with her shoulder, losing Edge and Ripper as she tumbled across the floor. She only stopped when she banged against the wall with the same shoulder. She screamed from the jolt, feeling a burning pain run down her arm and into the rest of her body. Jordan rolled to her good shoulder and went to hold her other arm only to feel something sticking out of it. When she looked, she saw the protrusion was white and covered in blood. It took her a moment to realize it was her own jagged bone sticking through her skin.
“Jordan, hang on!” Anders yelled. “I'm coming!” He was all the way on the other side of the chamber. Between him and her was the dragon and Fenris, the two clashing with sword and claw. Anders was trapped, unable to find a way around to her.
Jordan held her broken arm close to her body, wanting him to desperately get to her. She did not know where her daggers had landed, nor could she locate where Varric was. Everything was in a haze as the pain spread, feeling like fire was consuming her. A chirp then sounded to her side and Jordan turned quick to see a few dragonlings making their way toward her. They opened their jaws and growled, flashing teeth and their snake-like tongues. Jordan began to panic as they got closer. She couldn't fight them off. There was no one near her to help. One edged closer, kneeling close to the ground then springing right at her with a shriek.

Paraphrasing from Dragon Age 2
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Blood Promise