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Free as a Bird	By : Letticiae Category: +A through F > Dragon Age (all) > Dragon Age (all) Views: 9737 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Age, nor do I own the characters. I do not make money/profit from writing this fanfiction.

Chapter List
- 5
- 6
- 7
Warning: character death.

Chapter 6 – Live and Let Die
Daylight was over when they left the room at Dane's Refuge. Hawke flushed as she passed by the patrons. By the way they were staring and smirking, surely the thin wood walls on their room hadn't been enough to muffle their indiscreet growls of pleasure.
"Maker, mother is going to kill me. I'd rather face the darkspawn right now," she uttered as they rushed to the door.
Unwillingly they parted ways, both having to dine, bathe, pack and sleep before beginning their journey to Ostagar.
Once at home, Hawke was thankful to find a leather sack with potions, bandages, extra undertunics and pants, smallclothes, socks and two sleeping bags already packed for Carver and her. Dinner was cold but she wolfed it down anyway, while Bethany prepared her a bath. Leandra spared her the lecture for arriving at a late hour so that Hawke could have a nice last night at home before war.
At 4 a.m. the whole village gathered at the Imperial Highway outside Lothering saying prayers and waving goodbye to their brave sons and daughters.
"Move your arses, soldiers. We have to be at Ostagar by nightfall," cried the sergeant leading the group, putting them to march.
"I didn't see Barlin," Hawke said to Arthur as they picked up the fast pace the sergeant was imposing.
"Well, he didn't come. He wanted me to be a smith, because I'd be the only one in town which means I'd make a lot of coin and never need to risk my life joining the army and going to war. It was a nice, simple plan," he explained.
"And it came so close to working. Maker, old Barlin must want to feed me to the giant spiders."
"Yes, I believe he does," he chuckled. "Just make sure I come back in one piece and he will certainly forgive you," he winked.
"Sounds like a plan. Ah, and when we come back I want new daggers and armor, all custom made by you, of course."
"You won't need those anymore. I'll take care of you."
"I just want to check if you are a good smith," she teased.

The march to Ostagar was uneventful and they arrived at nightfall, as intended. The ruins of the old Tevinter fortress and its surroundings were packed with people – thousands of soldiers, along with merchants, sisters, healers and even the few remaining Grey Wardens. It was the Wardens, thanks to their ability to sense the darkspawn, who had informed King Cailan Theirin that the bulk of the horde would show itself there. The King had acted fast, immediately sending orders for his army units throughout Ferelden to head to Ostagar. The first units that had reached the fortress had already faced three small waves of the darkspawn in the last few days under the King's command and had emerged victorious. The fourth battle, though, the one that would take place the next day, would be nothing like those three and the Warden Commander Duncan pressed the matter with Maric's son to make sure they would stand a chance against the massive darkspawn horde that was heading their way.
The soldiers set camp for the night. They were only allowed sleeping bags, because there was no room within the ruins of the fortress to accommodate tents for all of them. They were too many and more were arriving by the minute. Though tired form the day-long march, Hawke couldn't sleep. The crowd, the lack of privacy, the whispering voices of sleepless soldiers, the uneasy people walking around the sleeping bags and the anticipation for the battle kept her up while Carver and Arthur snored the night away.
She joined a group of men engaged on a lively conversation next to a fire.
"I'm telling you, my friend, there's nothing to worry about. The word is that this is not a real Blight. Besides, Teyrn Loghain's men will be waiting to flank those bastards," said one of them.
"It seems like our prospects are good, then?" Hawke chimed in.
The man answered her something which she ignored, her attention now turned to the four people covered in blood coming from the heavy gates that separated the fortress from the Korcari Wilds.
"Hey, the Warden recruits are back. I hope they found a Wilds Flower for my sick mabari," a man said getting up on his feet and leaving after them.
Hawke observed the only woman in the band. Her armor was custom-made, there was a beautiful symbol engraved on her shield, which was probably a family crest, and her hair was carefully braided in an intricate fashion. Definitely a noble. Could such a woman have freely chosen that dire path? No, nobles are never so selfless. Something must have happened to her. She's here because she had no better option. Like me, Hawke realized with a sad smile.

At daybreak all soldiers were up and ready. Sergeants were shouting orders and handing out the last instructions before the battle that would take place that night. There were no rules of engagement against the darkspawn, it was just kill them however possible and avoid their blood. Four thousand soldiers would constitute the five battalions that would face the creatures first. The archers would start the battle in the front lines, shooting flaming arrows. The mabari hounds would be released next, while the archers would retreat , granting the front lines to the warriors and dual-weapon rogues to engage the darkspawn in close combat. Ten mages would be in the last line of each battalion where they would be somewhat protected while focusing on healing the soldiers ahead of them. To avoid friendly fire, the mages were to assume defensive stances and attack only when directly attacked. Once the darkspawn forces were fully engaged in battle, a unit inside the Tower of Ishal would lit the beacon on its top, signaling Loghain it was time for his two thousand men to charge, flanking the darkspawn and assuring Ferelden a decisive victory against the tainted beasts.
Hawke, Arthur and Carver would be in the same battalion and promised they would look after each other during the fight. The whole battle strategy seemed pretty solid and the three of them felt more at ease about the night ahead. During the day they divided their potions equally – two elfroot and one stamina for each –, stashed their sleeping bags and other belongings they could not carry to the battlefield and readied their armors and weapons.
The sun was setting and the tension was almost palpable around Ostagar as the soldiers marched to take their places in the battalions. Hawke hugged Carver and gave Arthur and affectionate kiss on the lips.
"No goodbyes," she said and they nodded.
They were all in position now, prepared to make a stand.
King Cailan arose ahead of his army, but there was no time for motivational speeches. It didn't take a Grey Warden to know the darkspawn were close as a sulfuric stench filled the air and everyone could feel Thedas trembling under their feet. The ruffled noises that were coming from the Wilds were quickly getting louder and more frightening. Hawke noticed the uneasiness creeping out on the soldiers faces as they unsheathed their weapons. Probably she didn't look so well either, since she had brought the two men she loved the most into this mess. What have I done? Why did I let them come? If, Maker forbid, something happens to one of them I'll never forgive myself. She was resolute in giving her life for theirs if she had to.
"Archers!" King Cailan shouted, ordering them to fire.
That was it. The battle had started.
"Hounds!"
The mabari charged the grotesque enemies that were now within sight.
Warriors and dual-weapon rogues assumed fighting stances. They were next.
"For Ferelden!" King Cailan cried, urging them to attack.
Humans and darkspawn clashed, engaging in a gruesome struggle for their lives. Backstabs and death blows were downing the numbers on both sides. How could those beasts have combat classes and specializations? If they had mages too…
Hawke felt an excruciating pain as she found herself trapped in a crushing prison. Carver beheaded the hurlock emissary trapping her in one swift move of his greatsword. She fell to the floor and reached for an elfroot potion in her pouch.
"Thanks, Carver. I owe you one," she said, draining the flask. "Of course they have mages. This is just great! The flanking units better be coming soon," she muttered to herself, since her brother had his attention on impaling at least two genlocks at a time with his gigantic sword.
Arthur came out of stealth at her side.
"Are you ok?" he asked while landing an explosive strike on a hurlock.
"Never better," she answered connecting an unforgiving chain on another one.
The wind came back to their lungs at the sight of the lit beacon. Everything was going to be ok.
They kept fighting side by side, in synchronized moves, like if they were dancing. They vanished and reappeared right behind a genlock alpha, backstabbing him to death. Reminiscing about the great moments they had spent practicing together years ago in Lothering, they looked into each other's eyes just for a split second and smiled before resuming their deadly dance.
But there was no end to the darkspawn. Corpses, limbs, pieces of armor and weapons were piling up on the battlefield. Drained from the incessant combat, Carver joined Hawke and Arthur as they backed down to drink their stamina draughts. Where were the damned flanking forces?
The King's army was already outnumbered, when the ogres arrived wiping out the terrified men. They wouldn't stand a chance without Loghain's aid.
"King Cailan is dead, Maker helps us all," soldiers were shouting across the battlefield.
Since there was still no sign of Loghain's forces, the last standing captain ordered the archers back in the field, now wielding swords and daggers and released the mages to fire at will, but they were not nearly enough to turn things around.
"The Warden Commander is dead, there is no hope," cried a sergeant before falling with an arrow through his chest.
The remaining soldiers kept backing down, faster each second. More darkspawn were emerging and the battle was clearly lost. Without captains, sergeants, generals, anyone at all with a rank anywhere to be seen and the horde pressing them, the last standing soldiers turned on their heels and ran for their lives, limping and bleeding their way out of fortress.
The darkspawn kept advancing and sent small scouting units ahead of the horde to hunt the fleeing survivors. Hawke, Carver and Arthur, already on the move, got rid of their gauntlets and helmets, reducing the weight they were carrying, and drank all the potions they had left. Though they were covered in too many bleeding cuts to be completely healed by simple elfroot potions, any improvement in their condition would give them a better chance of escaping those tainted creatures.

It was silent behind them for the first time since they had started running two hours ago. They stopped exhausted, panting, hungry, thirsty, cold and in pain, but they couldn't just sit there and rest. They knew the enemy was on the move so they had to get to Lothering as soon as possible, warn everyone about the incoming darkspawn horde and flee with their families to a safer place. As drained as they were, they had to keep moving, so Arthur put his arm around Hawke's waist pulling her close to his side on an effort to wane the cold and make the long journey home a little more bearable. She looked so weary and it saddened him that he couldn't do anything else for her right now.
They had been walking in a slow pace for over an hour, so fatigued that each step seemed harder and heavier than the previous. Despite the sun being up for some time now, the road was still chilly and foggy. Hawke halted as she heard noises behind them.
"We shouldn't have stopped running. The darkspawn are catching up with us," she said looking over her shoulder.
"I don't hear anything. Actually, I haven't heard anything for hours. Let's just rest here for a while," Carver suggested already crumbling on the ground.
"We can't. It's too open. There's nowhere to hide." Hawke was feeling uneasy. She reached a hand to help him up and beckoned him to move faster.
"Scouts! They are coming this way!" Arthur shouted.
They tried to run, but two genlocks appeared right in front of them.
"Damned darkspawn rogues!" Hawke said unsheathing her daggers.
They were surrounded. To avoid being backstabbed by the rogues, they kept their backs to each other and assumed defensive stances.
Suddenly, Hawke opened her eyes. She was on the ground, dizzy and uncertain for how long she had been out. Both Arthur and Carver screamed her name, forcing her into full awareness. It took her one second to figure out all that was happening, but it felt like a lifetime, like if the world was slow motion.
An ogre had hurled a massive rock at them, knocking everyone out, including the five darkspawn that were surrounding them. Carver was down on his back, unarmed and struggling against a hurlock alpha that was lowering a sword to his chest. The sword was already through his armor and was starting to split his skin open right over his heart. Arthur was gasping and coughing blood, striving to breath as the ogre squished him in his hands. The weapon closer to Hawke was Carver's greatsword. Her daggers were nowhere to be seen. All the other darkspawn were either dead or unconscious. It was just her, the hurlock alpha and the ogre. Hawke couldn't hesitate or both Carver and Arthur would die. She had to choose.
She got her brother's sword. It was awfully heavy but the adrenaline rush in her body gave her the strength she needed to lift it, run towards Carver and impale the Hurlock that was about to kill him. She pulled the sword out of the creature's chest and turned around just in time to see Arthur, covered in blood, draw his last breath. The ogre hurled his haggard corpse at them and it fell at Hawke's feet. Everything was slow motion again as she looked into his big green eyes for the last time. The bright eyes that met hers in the Chantry graveyard, that stared menacingly at her during their practice duels, that were delighted to see her naked, that were sad to say goodbye to her, that cried to see her again, that admired her tattoo, that closed when they came together, that promised her all she ever wanted, that loved her and made her happy time and time again. Now they were murky and empty. She reached a trembling hand to close them, but Carver grasped her arm and yanked her out of there before she could do it. The ogre was preparing to ram them and they had to move. They were in no condition to face such a foe, but ogres are slow and they could outrun it, so they turned on their heels and ran without looking back.
- 5
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- 7
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Free as a Bird