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Truly, it was a horrid situation to be in. Not that Morrigan had anyone to blame but herself. She should have been watching better when she followed Alistair into the chamber, instead, she tripped some sort of mechanism that sealed the door to this chamber. Logically, it should be able to reopen. Logically, the group should be able to find the mechanism to open the door. Unfortunately, while they were all certain that there was a way to reopen the door, it wasn’t something they could figure out. The idea of breaking through the wall had been entertained, but there was some concern of causing a cave-in.
Eventually, after ten minutes of Persephone poring over their shoddy maps, she provided them directions that they all hoped would allow their tunnels the link back up. Of course, no one could really forget that it was entirely possible there would be no exit for Alistair and Morrigan, and they may very well die down there. Still, it seemed better not to voice that just yet.
“Watch your head,” Alistair said as he ducked into the next room.
“I do not suffer your height, Alistair. Seems more prudent for you to concern yourself with your own head,” she snipped back, but still remained stooped as she cleared the doorway.
“Right, of course. I forgot, the perfect Morrigan doesn’t need warnings about low ceilings.”
Morrigan didn’t bother entertaining him with a response, occasionally reaching up to see how high the ceiling was and when she could return to full height. She saw Alistair’s shape clear the next doorway, stepping into pitch black, and picked up the pace to join him.
As she stepped through the doorway, she pulled her staff off her back and held it out. Light sparked to life at the end, flooding the space with a cold, white light. Alistair sucked in a breath as the room came into view. “Well, shit.”
Golems lined the walls, at least twice the size of Shale. The group had encountered golems before, and while a hard fight, it was easier with their entire party. With just Morrigan and Alistair, things seemed less optimistic.
“We could turn back, find another route,” Alistair said, glancing back towards the door they had just left.
“Persephone did not provide us a full map, to navigate blind is more likely to get us killed than these golems. And, we should not forget, the last passageway that turned off was back down the path an hour.”
“Forgive me for finding starvation more appealing than being squished to death.”
“I assure you, Alistair, you would change your mind once you started to starve to death,” Morrigan said, tapping the sword at his side with the butt of her staff. “Come, we should not delay.”
Grumbling, Alistair drew his sword and shield. There was a pause as the two hesitated next to the doorway. If they were to turn back, this was the time. Morrigan refused to seem a coward and stepped further into the room. Alistair started, moving in front of her to defend.
They crept along, eyeing the golems warily. Perhaps they would be lucky, perhaps the golems wouldn’t come to life and try to kill them. Of course, they were not lucky, a fact proved when they had reached the halfway point of the room. A grinding sound broke the tense silence, and the two turned, watching as two golems came to life. Morrigan moved first, flinging a blast of ice at the golems. Ice crept up their legs and over their bodies, slowing the two as they lumbered towards Alistair and Morrigan. Alistair lunged forward, bashing the golems with his shield as Morrigan sent more volleys of ice, trying to freeze their joints and keep them from moving. Just as Morrigan fully froze one, Alistair smashed through the other one’s arms. The golem struggled against the ice encasing its legs, and Alistair slammed into it again, knocking it back.
The sound of stone grinding against stone filled the room again, and Morrigan whipped around, sending a blast of lightning towards the golems on the other wall. As the bolts of electricity cleared, Morrigan could see three more golems had come to life, and one was about to smash her with a boulder. She swore, diving out of the way as the boulder shattered against the ground. She saw Alistair turn at the noise and scrambled to her feet, sending another blast of ice halfway to her feet. Alistair raced past her, slamming into the closest golem shield first. Focusing on the second closest, Morrigan cut her staff down through the air as she focused as much magical force as she could manage into the space around it. The golem slowed, as if trying to walk through water, before coming to a stop. It visibly strained in place, the stone beneath its feet cracking. Satisfied it would hold, she turned to the next one only to find it far too close for comfort.
Morrigan scrambled back, sending off a blast of electricity at the approaching golem. It shot back from the force of the magic, slamming against the floor with a crack. Sweat clung to Morrigan’s skin, she could feel exhaustion setting in. She yanked a vial of lyrium from the pouch on her belt and downed it. It was as if lightning ran through her body. A soft melody floated through her thoughts as Morrigan hurled another spell at the golem she had knocked down. She watched as the stone that made up its body fell away, starting at the narrowest points of the body as it was eaten from the inside. Panting, Morrigan turned to see Alistair bashing through the middle of his golem with his shield. Sweat coated his visible skin , mingling with an alarming amount of blood running down from his forehead.
“I suggest getting away from that golem!” she called, pointing to the one that was staggering back to its feet. Alistair staggered a bit, looking between the golem getting up and Morrigan before jogging to her side.
He reached her just as the golem charged at them, only to explode and scatter huge chunks of rock across the room. Morrigan ducked, covering her head as Alistair stepped in front of her, raising his shield to cover both of them. Rocks banged against his shield, clattering loudly against the ground. Eventually he lowered the shield, looking at the last three decimated golems.
“Could have been worse,” he said, straightening up.
“Certainly. We could be dead.”
“How optimistic of y— watch out!” Alistair cut himself off as he turned to look at Morrigan, eyes going wide as he shoved her aside and raised his shield. Stumbling, Morrigan caught herself and turned in time to see another golem slam its arm into Alistair’s shield. He went flying and crashed into the far wall, landing on his leg strangely with a wet cracking noise. With a cry, Morrigan lunged at the golem, the cry morphing into a roar as she turned into a bear. She tackled the golem, knocking it to the ground and grabbed its head, bashing it against the ground. It cracked under her paws as the arms battered her body. It hurt, and she was almost certain one of her ribs had cracked under the assault, but she didn’t stop until the head crumbled in her paws.
As the stone beast went still beneath her, Morrigan stumbled back and turned back to herself. She winced as she straightened. Breathing hurt, but she could worry about that later. Whirling around, she saw Alistair slumped against the wall, struggling to hold his head up as he watched her. Cursing, Morrigan ran to his side.
Her stomach turned a little at the sight of his leg. It was twisted strangely beneath him, and she doubted he’d be able to walk alone. With a sigh, Morrigan moved next to him and hooked his arm over her shoulders.
“Come, Alistair, we cannot stay here. On three,” she said, and counted down before heaving him to his feet. Almost all of Alistair’s weight was on her, and she staggered, the pain in her side stabbing and making her light-headed. Once they steadied, Morrigan fumbled with his sword before getting it off the ground, and the two started the slow trek to the far doorway.
Crossing the room felt like an age. With Alistair so injured, Morrigan couldn’t move very quickly, paired with her own injuries that slowed her down even more. Alistair still struggled to keep his head up and occasionally bumped heads with Morrigan. When they finally reached the far door, Morrigan almost collapsed from relief. Instead, she dragged the two of them to the nearest alcove and settled Alistair against the wall.
Healing magic had never been Morrigan’s strong suit, but she would have to do her best so Alistair didn’t die. She felt over his leg, grimacing as she doffed his armour.
“Tis vital you stay awake,” she said as she worked. “If you fall asleep, you may not wake up.”
“Stay wake, got it,” he slurred, blinking down at her as his head bobbed.
It took some fussing, but eventually Morrigan had his armour off. She could tell just from feeling the leg that things were bad and hoped she had enough skill to fix it. Taking a deep breath, she summoned as much magic as she could to her hands and held them over Alistair’s leg. He squirmed a little, brow furrowing as she worked, but said nothing. After a few minutes and feeling his leg again, Morrigan was confident that it was mostly healed. She moved her attention to his head, wondering if she should have focused on this first. Being hit in the head wrong could kill a person, what if she hadn’t moved fast enough?
She set to work, muttering to herself as she summoned more magic to her hands. Alistair went to scratch at his forehead as Morrigan’s healing stitched together a gash there, and she batted it away. “You would do well not to touch anything I am healing.”
“I guess I’m just more surprised you’re healing me at all,” he said, words still slurring slightly, but not as badly as before. “Survival of the fittest and everything.”
Morrigan hesitated at his words, frowning a little. “Tis about my own survival. I need you to tell me where to darkspawn are and if you died under my watch, Persephone would have my head.”
Alistair muttered something Morrigan couldn’t make out, but she didn’t press him on it. Instead, she kept working, feeling over Alistair’s skull every now and then, looking for tender spots. Finally, she was satisfied and pulled away from him. Hissing, she found her own stop against the wall and began to heal her ribs.
“You were injured?” Alistair asked, leaning forward.
“Tis but a scratch, I shall be fine,” Morrigan snipped, not looking at him. “Setup what you can to rest for the night, I doubt we will be making it far without sleep.”
Setting up a small camp for the night proved harder than expected. Alistair still struggled to walk by himself, but they eventually had their bedding pulled out and arranged some shelter from the rest of the corridor. They had no supplies for a fire, so were reduced to huddling in their bedding. Of course, Alistair seemed fine, but Morrigan was freezing. It was easier to stay warm while constantly moving through the tunnels, but she shivered under her blankets now that she was still.
Silence stretched between them in the dim light of the tunnel. Morrigan shivering and Alistair shifting in his bedding.
“If you’re cold, we can share bedding,” Alistair offered after a few minutes.
“I do not need your pity,” Morrigan snapped, pulling her blankets tighter around her.
Another long silence. “Persephone would have my head if I let you freeze to death.”
Morrigan considered his offer quietly. “Fine.”
She huffed as they shifted their bedding together and climbed under the same blankets. Morrigan very intentionally gave herself as much space as possible from Alistair, turning her back to him.
“You’re welcome,” Alistair said. Morrigan didn’t reply.
When Morrigan woke up, she was warm, pleasantly so. She was almost convinced she was out of these damned Deep Roads and back on the surface, under the sun. This delusion lasted until she opened her eyes and realised where she was. It took every ounce of will for Morrigan to not immediately fling herself back, face burning. She would die of mortification if Alistair woke up and found her like this, nuzzled into his side with his arm around her. Still, it wasn’t entirely unpleasant. It was almost nice having someone holding her.
Morrigan pinched herself, yanking herself from her thoughts. She felt this way only because she was tired. Slowly, Morrigan wiggled from his arms and started to pack up what she could of their campsite. They should have been able to travel much further than they had before resting, but the golems had been an unexpected setback. Such a delay would put them considerably behind the rest of their party, not to mention their slowed pace if Alistair still couldn’t walk unassisted.
By the time Alistair woke up, Morrigan had packed everything but their bedding. Wasting no time, Morrigan had him packing up the rest of the bedding as she pulled out the instructions from Persephone that Alistair had written down and was making her way down the corridor to check for their next turn. When she returned to the alcove, everything was packed, and Alistair was struggling to stand.
“Put your bag on, since you clearly cannot walk I will assist you,” she said, marching over and thrusting Alistair’s bag into his arms. Morrigan slung her bag over her shoulders as Alistair slid his on. Once again, Morrigan hooked Alistair’s arm over her shoulders, and the two stood together.
Alistair’s injury slowed their trek through the corridors, but they were moving much quicker than they had after fighting the golems. Now and then, Morrigan would ask if any darkspawn were approaching and adjust their pace accordingly. They would pause every couple of hours to rest, Alistair exhausted from his leg injury and Morrigan from partially carrying him everywhere. It was during one of these rests that something nagged at Morrigan.
“Alistair, Grey Wardens have the ability to detect nearby darkspawn?”
“Yes.”
“Tis merely an idle thought, but… Would the darkspawn be able to sense a Warden?”
Alistair was quiet for a moment, as if thinking over his words. It made Morrigan squirm, this seemed like it would be bad news.
“Yes, from what I understand of it. It’s easier for them to detect a large group of Wardens, the same way it’s easier for a Warden to detect a large group of darkspawn. With just me, or just me and Persephone, we should be safe.”
“Excellent, I would loathe to leave you behind and have to explain such a choice to Persephone.”
“Ha ha.”
The narrow, dim corridors seemed to stretch on forever. They had been lucky so far, each passage they needed with either unblocked or had a crumbling wall nearby that would keep them on their path. Darkspawn had even been sparse, down other pathways or ending up far behind them. The lack of darkspawn had been a relief, Morrigan doubted they would be able to escape a fight with them in their current condition. Alistair couldn’t even stand by himself, he would be no help in a fight.
Alistair frowned as they entered a larger chamber. Columns stretched to the high ceiling, and there were three doors splitting off down different corridors. The doors on the left and right had collapsed, but the one ahead of them remained unblocked. Blessedly, that was the path they needed to follow.
“Morrigan, wait.”
“What is it?” Morrigan slowed to a stop, adjusting Alistair’s weight on her shoulders.
“There are darkspawn ahead, approaching quickly.”
“Should we go back? Perhaps we could slip into another corridor until they pass.”
Alistair gave an almost bitter laugh, and Morrigan had a sense of déjà vu. “It’s too far back, we wouldn’t make it in time.”
Morrigan grimaced, running over the options in her head. Remaining in here would allow them to be surrounded, but stepping into the corridor could allow them to be overwhelmed and trampled. Still, with her magic, the corridor would allow her to block off the darkspawn more effectively. That would be better, with Alistair unable to guard her back. She turned, trying to tug Alistair back the way they had come.
“I told you, we won’t make it,” he protested, trying and failing to resist her.
“I’m well aware, just do what I ask of you.”
Once they had left the larger chamber, Morrigan set Alistair in the closest alcove and stepped away from him, readying her staff. Alistair tried to get up, struggling with his leg.
“What are you doing, Morrigan?”
“Seems foolish to not attempt a stand of some form,” she said and aimed her staff at Alistair, erecting a barrier around him. It had the added benefit of trapping him in place, which Alistair loudly protested. Morrigan ignored him, moving to the doorway to watch for the approaching darkspawn. Aside from Alistair struggling against her magic, the corridor was silent. Time seemed to drag on as Morrigan waited for the darkspawn to appear on the opposite side of the room.
Then she heard the humming.
A small group of archer hurlocks and genlocks rounded a corner and sprinted down the corridor towards the larger chamber. The screams of shrieks could be heard in the distance. Morrigan prepared to cast a spell, ready to blast the approaching darkspawn with flames when a golem rounded the corner behind them. A very small golem. Morrigan wasn’t religious, but she imagined if she were anything like Leliana, she’d be thanking the Maker. Instead, she felt grateful that Persephone was so persistent when it came to her goals.
Another wave of darkspawn spilled into the corridor behind Shale, soon followed by the rest of the party. Sten and their newest member, Oghren, were on Shale’s heels. The three smashed their way through the darkspawn, clearing a path. Persephone and Zevran followed behind, picking off stragglers with Cerberus circling his mistress. Leliana and Wynne took up the rear, Leliana firing arrows into the hoard as Wynne kept everyone alive, or whatever someone with her skill set did. Morrigan shot off a few blasts of flame before rushing back to Alistair’s side and dropping the protection she had around him.
“What the fuck was—” he started, and Morrigan interrupted him.
“Shut up, the rest of the party is here,” she said, looping his arm over her shoulders and hauling Alistair to his feet. “Tis the reason the darkspawn were coming towards us so quickly, they were being chased.”
Morrigan helped Alistair limp into the larger chamber, firing her magic off at the darkspawn that the others hadn’t reached yet.
“There! Persephone, look!” Leliana called, and Persephone lifted her head, smiling when she saw Morrigan and Alistair.
The darkspawn were dealt with in minutes, soon scattered corpses around the room. Persephone ran up to Morrigan and Alistair, grabbing their shoulders.
“You’re alive! Thank the Maker. I was worried when we didn’t see you at the planned meeting area, but we thought maybe something had slowed you down,” Persephone said, looking them over. She paused when she saw Alistair’s leg. “Alistair, what happened?”
“Golems, but Morrigan kept me going,” he said. Persephone seemed a little surprised by this, but called Wynne over and directed Morrigan to set Alistair against one of the pillars. She did as instructed, helping Alistair to the closest pillar and lowering him to the ground.
“I didn’t appreciate you locking me in place before,” Alistair said as Morrigan helped him stretch his leg out in front of him and doffed his armour for Wynne to look at his leg.
“I will not apologise for attempting to keep you safe,” Morrigan said, tone clipped.
“And who would have looked out for you?”
“You could hardly stand.”
Alistair went quiet, pressing his lips together as Wynne approached. Morrigan hesitated, not wanting to leave. When had she started to care? Instead of lingering, she stood and began to step away.
“Morrigan,” Alistair said, and she paused, turning to look at him. “Thank you.”
“Tis nothing you need feel indebted over.” She looked at Wynne. “His suffered a head injury as well, ensure you tend to to that.”
She walked away, refusing to look back at Alistair and deciding then that she wouldn’t ask him or Wynne about his recovery.