Dragon Age: Origins | The story behind Cousland

Chapter 5- Lothering

Chapter 5- Lothering

"I have a wonder, Alistair, if you will indulge me." Morrigan starts a conversation. Oh, dear, this will not end good.

Alistair sighs. "Do I have a choice?"

"Of the two of you that remain, are you not the senior Grey Warden here? I find it curious that you allow another to lead while you follow."

"You find that curious, do you?"

"In fact, you defer to a new recruit. Is this a policy of the Grey Wardens? Or simply a personal one?

"What do you want to hear? That I prefer to follow? I do." He gets a little bit closer to me, almost near my right arm. Baby barks and runs in front of me, 'leading' us.

"You sound so very defensive." She is making it worse. She's poking Alistair and some day he is going to explode.

"Couldn't you crawl into a bush somewhere and die? That would be great, thanks?" I gasp and turn at Alistair, looking at him in shock. "What?" he asks me. I sigh and continue to walk to the bridge in front of us. There are some caravans blocking the way and a group of men in front of them.

"More travelers to attend to. I'd guess the pretty one is the leader." I scoff and look at the 'prince charming' in front of me.

A bald bandit looks at their leader, the one that spoke, and talks. "Err... they don't look much like them others, you know. Uh... maybe we should let these one pass..."

The leader shakes his hand at Baldy, "Nonsense!" and turns at me. "Greetings, travelers!"

"Highwaymen. Preying on those fleeing the darkspawn, I suppose." Alistair whispers.

Morrigan puffs. "They are fools to get in our way. I say teach them a lesson." And I agree with you.

"Now is that any way to greet someone? Tsk, tsk, tsk. A simple ten silvers and you're free to move on."

"Ten silvers?!" I shout at them. We don't even have that much. All the money I had I lost at Ostagar. I sigh and put one of my palm on the right hip, near the dagger. "You should listen to your friend. We're not refugees."

Baldy talks again. "What did I tell you? No wagons, and this one looks armed."

The leader slaps Baldy's head. "The toll applies to everyone, Hanric. That's why it's a toll and not, say, a refugee tax"

"Oh, right. Even if you're not a refugee, you still gotta pay."

I scoff and hold the dagger's handle. "Forget it. I'm not paying."

"Well I can't say I'm pleased to hear that. We have rules, you know."

"Right," Hanric agrees. "We get to ransack your corpse, then. Those are the rules."

"You can certainly try."

The leader seems angry. "Well this is going nowhere. Let's finish this, gents!" They all draw their weapons and so do we. I get my daggers and stab the leader in the foot, while Morrigan finishes Hanric. I cut pretty deep in his torso and he falls on the ground. Alistair comes near me, getting his sword out of another one's head. "All right! I surrender! We-we-we're just trying to get by, before the darkspawn get us all!"