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WHO: Nathaniel Hawke, Bethany Hawke, and the Wardens of Skyhold
WHAT: Two more Wardens come to the fold, with news to share.
WHEN: 22nd of Wintermarch
WHERE: The Front Gates of Skyhold
NOTES: Warnings for Warden Awesomeness.

The sun had dipped down behind the mountains, when the two shadowy figures emerged at the edge of the soldier's camp. Cloaked and hooded, they avoided the camp fires and the quiet conversations and chatter of the soldiers, instead slipping through to head towards the main gates. As they approached, it was clear that one of the figures was taller than the other, and the smaller one carried a staff. A very ... distinctive staff.

The guards were well trained, so they did not pull swords until the figures had entered the dim torchlight where they could see them more clearly. One of them stepped forward, his voice firm, "Stand, and identify yourself."

There was definite pause to the taller of the two figures, as he seemed to draw back. Looking at all of the guards, measuring his chances in either taking them out or get past them. The smaller figure reached up, lifting up a small gloved hand to put on the taller one's shoulder. A soft feminine voice sounded from within her hood. "It's all right. We're safe here."

The taller figure seemed to look into the hooded female's face, still obscured, and then nodded once. The smaller figure nodded in turn, before she stepped forward and pulled her hood away from her face, flipping back her cloak slightly. The guards stared at her, then down to the griffon standard on her shoulder, the red scarf with a distinct design on it, then back up to the woman's warm brown eyes. She held herself upright, with no fear or shame, as she stated firmly.

"I am Warden Bethany Hawke, with Senior Warden Nathaniel Howe. We bring news to our fellow Wardens, whomever made it here. Call for them." She paused, then stated a little more kindly, "Immediately, please."

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Kaisa was quick to show up when she heard that more Wardens had arrived. It was an incredible relief--The Wardens that were with them were at a much lesser risk of finding themselves on the unfortunate end of a blood magic ritual. And the more of them, the better chances they had of figuring this whole kerfluffle out, before anything dire happened.

As soon as her eyes were laid on the two figures, her face split into a wide grin, and she raced across the distance to them. The woman was greeted first, with a bear hug and laughing, then an affectionate hair ruffle as Kaisa pulled away to inspect her. "Bethany! You're looking better than I could have hoped."

She releases Bethany to turn her attention to the man, and unless he indicates that he'd much rather not, he'll be pulled into an enthusiastic hug as well, complete with a friendly thump on the back. "And Nate! Thank the Maker the two of you are alright. I've been so worried about everyone--I only arrived a little bit before you, and I'm still trying to figure out who's here."

She stepped away from Nathaniel so she could speak to both of them, face growing somber. "This is some shit, huh? Whole world heading straight into the void, and the Wardens had to join on in." She sighs, propping her hands on her hips, and shaking her head, trying to smile again. "But it'll all work out, just wait. We'll get this whole mess straightened right on out."

Bethany had put her hand on Nate's arm as the guards went to fetch some of the Wardens -- without telling them who precisely was there. She knew some of their brothers and sisters must have made it here, but which ones? She bit her bottom lip, looking out to the distance. Well, if she was going to stand here and worry, at least she had something nice to gaze at while she worried --

She heard the thumping of steps coming towards them, and turned sharply, her gaze narrowing in preparation. Preparation that faded into an astonished smile as Kaisa all but barreled into her and hugged her so tight that she lost her breath for a moment, but she hugged back just as tightly. "Kaisa! You're alive!"

She caught her breath, before looking soberly over at Nate, then back to Kaisa. Her friend's open enthusiasm and her determination to fight the good fight? Was just what Bethany needed to hear right now, and she shot a smile over at Nate, before she turned a more serious look to Kaisa. "I'm glad you're ready for a fight, Kaisa ... because once we get all the Wardens together, you'll see why we need all the fight we can get."

"Kaisa." Nathaniel flinches just a tad at the use of the diminutive Nate, something he hasn't generally been called since he was a child, but he gives a perfectly genuine grin and offers her a handshake. "It's good to see you."

"Andraste's—"

He's halfway down the stairs before he recognizes their faces, all three of them, and that isn't a quiet Andraste's; it's made of pure relief. He makes it another quarter of the way down the stairs before he gives up on them entirely and vaults over the low wall to the ground like a ~~much~~ slightly younger man.

The relief isn't too personal. Even among brothers and sisters, he's slow to make friends. But he knows them, all three of them, well enough to guess that they probably aren't here to drag anyone back to Clarel. So: relief. He'd have hated to have a bloody fight in the middle of the courtyard.

He's still a little wary, though. Too wary to rush all the way forward, despite his eagerness to get within talking distance, and grab anybody into any embraces, unarmed and unarmored as he is.

"If any more of us show up, they're going to start billing Weisshaupt for our food," he says.

"You know me, Bethany. I love fights. The bigger the challenge, the better." She feels like a dog that just got reunited with an old friend, and she has to resist bouncing. Because Wardens have some decorum, after all. And she'll try to look properly decorous while giving Nathaniel a firm handshake. "Maker's ass, it's good to see you guys, too."

She forces herself to look solemn as she turns to Bethany, hands on her hips. "But it sounds like you have information? I feel blasted useless, the only thing I've discovered is that I really fucking hate Orlais--" And at least she's not the only one who's not very good at this whole dour serious Warden thing, because here comes Alistair, literally leaping over walls to come see them. And if he's too wary, at least Kaisa isn't because she makes short work of the remaining distance between them, and will also attempt to pull him into a bear hug (though if he makes it clear he'd rather not, she will back off).

"Good! Maybe if we start costing those blighted tools some money, they'll wake up and smell the giant nug shit that's been festering down here." She pulled away to look him over, a smile on her face, despite her grim words. "Does the Inquisition own no beds, Alistair? Look at you, when was the last time you slept?" You look like shit, bro.

Feeling she's done enough fussing for the moment, she turns back to the other two. "Okay, is this enough of us to spill the beans, or do I have to wrestle more out of the woodwork?"

"Kaisa? Never change."

Bethany smiled again, before shooting a glance towards Nathaniel. So much information, and so very little they could do about it. Until now. Now that they might actually have real back-up --

"Alistair?"

Her brown eyes widened as she saw Alistair leap over the railing, just like he had all all those years ago. Dimples flashed, and she moved in after Kaisa, waiting for her to stand back so she too could move in to hug him just as tightly as she could.

Her expression, however, flashed with worry as Kaisa spoke up, her lips pushing together. "You do look ... rather pale, Alistair."

She shot a worried glance past at Nathaniel -- they had both been ignoring the Calling as best they could, but who knew how it had been affecting the others?

She shook her head. Focus, here and now. They could talk about this when they were in private quarters. "We'll need whoever is here, Kaisa. We need to round up the lot."

Ah. Alistair. Nathaniel gives him a nod. Not friends, but Nathaniel knows him well enough to have believed he wouldn't go along with Clarel, at least.

"He doesn't need to know how pale and tired he looks, so lay off the man," he grumbles at the girls. "Maker. Were you both raised in a barn?"

He approaches Alistair to offer a handshake.

"Good to see you, ser. The Wardens are gathering in Adamant Fortress. Last we could tell, Erimond was in the Western Approach with a few of them. We couldn't get close enough to know what he was doing."

Edited 2016-01-28 13:51 (UTC)

The hugs Alistair accepts with dignity; the fussing, less so, with a nose wrinkle and sheepish look aside. "The Inquisition has tents," he says. "If you want a bed you have to fight for it."

Or be nobility. Or share. He has been sleeping in one, most nights, himself, but he knows he looks exhausted anyway. The look he gives Nathaniel is a little grateful, but not overly grateful—grateful in a manly way, to match the manly handshaking.

Gathering everyone might be a tall order. Scipio and Rafael will probably only come if there's food. But it's a nice aspiration.

"Erimond?" he echoes. He'd heard something about someone, something something Tevinter, but the name is unfamiliar. "The Inquisition sent scouts to Griffon Wing Keep. The Wardens were burning a lot of bodies." What follows is a valiant attempt at not sounding too angry at their hosts. "But they can't spare the forces right now."

"I don't even know all of who's here. What should I do? Go fetch an ogre to wrestle in and see who runs to it and who runs away?" She raised an eyebrow at Bethany, trying to think of just how they might do that. The sending crystals would work, if she knew who was who. Maybe put up an announcement?

"There were no barns in Denerim, I was raised in a bar. It's basically the same thing, just missing an n." Is her reply to Nathaniel's chiding on her fussing, still pulling her lip as she contemplates the task of fetching the Wardens. His news, however, strikes all other thoughts from her head, and she turns to scowl in contemplation at this new development. Adamant Fortress, huh? That meant that they were digging in.

"I'll fight for a bed for you, Alistair." She said it offhandedly, still focused on the news Nathaniel had shared. "Pick one out and I'll wrestle it open."

She focused, however, when Alistair gave more grim news. The scowl set on her face deepened, and she hunched up, temper flaring at the idea that the Inquisition had brushed off the Wardens to do what--? Go build snowmen in Emprise? A half dozen responses surge on her tongue, from demanding to speak to whoever's in charge around here, to announcing that if the Inquisition doesn't care, they can go take care of this themselves. But her temper has improved, slightly, since she was young, and she grinds her teeth as she reminds herself that threatening to dangle someone over the ramparts until they helped the Wardens would not, in fact, be helpful.

"Maker's balls, when it rains, it pours." Is what she says instead. "And we're sitting in a hut with some mighty shitty thatching." If being a Warden didn't work out after all of this, she could always go into poetry. "I guess the first thing that I'd like to figure out is who here is the most senior Warden. I know it's not really the time to worry about ranks..." She sighed, rubbing her neck. "...But we should all meet up, like Bethany said, and it'd be nice to have someone sort of in charge, at least."

She casts an appraising glance at Alistair at this. Well, he's certainly the most senior of the four of them...

"Oh, let's not make this place more interesting than it already is ... " Bethany murmured, as she stepped in closer, so that they wouldn't be overheard any more than they should be. "They can be informed in due time, I suppose."

She folded her hands together in front of her, giving Nathaniel a wry look as he knew very well where she was raised, and who helped raise her. "Showing concern over someone isn't being raised in a barn, Nathaniel. Most people call it sympathy."

One eyebrow raised at Kaisa, and she sighed again. Knowing her, she probably would. At Alistair's news, however, her lips pressed into a frown. She looked around to the four of them, before stating simply, "I am sure they would not ignore a threat like this to our people -- and they simply haven't gotten enough intelligence. Perhaps what we bring will help them realize the depth of this particular threat to Thedas."

A quiet nod, "And we are going to need to organize, to see where our numbers are at and what we all bring to the table." As she also did not want to say what they were all thinking - that they would have to go to get their people on their own.

"Livius Erimond, Ser. He's Tevinter, magister I think, and no Warden. He seems to be giving orders as much as Clarel. He broke off from the main force with a small Warden force and headed for the Western Approach. If the Wardens are burning bodies there..."

Nathaniel rubs a temple.

"I'm not going to try to put that one together. Not till I've had a bath and a shave."

Edited 2016-02-01 18:18 (UTC)

Alistair waves off the offer to find him a bed, and soon thereafter holds up both hands in front of his chest and shakes his head, eyebrows raised, not particularly alarmed but definitely communicating no way. He's not in charge. "Warden Kaidan is here, from Weisshaupt," Alistair says. "He's in charge."

Except when Alistair decides he isn't. That's another story.

"They have enough intelligence to know we're desperate, but they have other problems. We're on the list," he tells Bethany. Resentful, but he'll resent it less when he sees Emprise and the half-starved villagers in cages. "Erimond—there are Tevinters here. Decent ones. We, ah, put one of them through the Joining a few weeks ago. He might know more about who we're dealing with."

"Warden Kaidan," Kaisa repeats, eyes glancing off to the side as she shuffles around her memory to see if the name produces anything. A few vague things, nothing to make a real definitive decision on the man's character. But if he's in charge, than he's in charge, and Kaisa will just be glad to call the matter settled. "Does he have one of those sending crystal things? I'd like to report in with him."

She's looking far less thrilled with the knowledge that Tevinter is sticking their grubby hands into this Warden pie, and she's about to say as much when Alistair announces that he'd gone and put a Tevinter through the Joining. She stares at him with the same surprise that would befit a declaration that a nug had joined their ranks.

"You had a Vint join us? Well, if he passed the Joining then he passed, I suppose. Maker's ass, this is a lot of shit to take in. Burning bodies and being on a Maker-damned waiting list while we cross our fingers and toes that there isn't a Blight happening right under our noses and all the other Wardens are just--" She sighed again. And once more, for good measure.

"--It is what it is. The Wardens have dealt with bigger messes." She straightens up, crossing her arms. Standing around whining won't do any good. "We'll get all of this figured out. Not going to let a fucking magister and some thick-headed Orlesians ruin an organization that's been around a thousand years." She thinks it's been a thousand years. That sounds about right. She'll look at a calendar later.

Bethany raised an eyebrow at Alistair, because yes, that was a very speedy answer to the question of who was in charge, before she shifted her attention back to Kaisa. The mention of Tevinter made her own mouth pucker, but she was going to hold her tongue until she had met the fellow. She'd learned a long time ago not to judge people until she actually talking to him.

She glanced over at Nathaniel, her lips quirking. "Agreed. Food and bath, and then we can start sorting out all of this."

She looked around at the others, "As for what we're doing ... I know Nathaniel has some ideas."

Kaidan moved quickly when the summons came. The new visitors could mean one of two things - either it was more Wardens coming to join them, or else Clarel had found them and was sending some kind of warning. Either way, they had to know quickly. He grabbed his bladed staff, and made his way quickly to the main gate.

Of course, if the guard had told him what the names were, he might not have rushed so much. He'd never met the pair there, but Bethany Hawke was known to him from his research on Corypheus, and Howe... well, his family history was well known. But both had excelled as Wardens from all reports, so as long as they weren't working for Clarel, all would be fine.

"Senior Warden Kaidan Alenko," he said, inclining his head as he approached them. "Welcome to Skyhold."

"Andraste's blood, it's good to see you." Nathaniel hasn't met the man, but he approaches him, reaching for his hand to shake it firmly. "Senior Warden Nathaniel Howe. We've been on the road for months. You're the first friendly Wardens we've seen."

Bethany dipped down into a faint bow, smiling warmly behind Nathaniel, moving to take his hand after Nathaniel stepped back. "Warden Bethany Hawke." She paused, before asking a little more urgently, "Please, tell us, did more of us escape?"

Oh thank the Maker. He reached out, shaking first Nathaniel's, then Bethany's, before gesturing inside to Skyhold. "Yes, we've got a few of us here now. Not as many as I'd like, but a good start. Come on, let's find you some food and somewhere quiet to talk." Away from overhearing ears. Skyhold's spymaster was just too good at her job.

"Thank you, Kaidan." Nathaniel casts a relieved smile at Bethany. Look, we made it. "It's been a while since we had a hot meal."

Gratitude mixed with relief in her expression, before she looked over at Nathaniel, her smile widening. She never doubted him for a second that he would get them here. "Or a bath."

She stated with a completely straight face, "I would almost prefer the bath first."

"Well, if you really want to, there are bathhouses here, but I'd recommend taking your time over them," he said with a smile. "Savouring it. We have a lot to catch up on." The Wardens that had been stuck in Skyhold might also get some answers to their questions.

"Bath after, then. We've been tracking Erimond and the Wardens. There are a few things you should know right away."

Bethany nodded her head solemnly in agreement. "Yes, this information cannot wait. The bath, alas, can." She fell into step behind the two of them - after all she was not a Senior Warden just yet. Besides, it gave her more of a chance to look around and get a better idea of the area.

"Come on then. The kitchens are used to requests from Wardens at odd hours now," Kaidan said with a grin as he led the way. "It always helps to keep them on side."

He turned to the pair of them as they walked, and lowered his voice. "There are some things you should know as well, about what is causing the False Calling. Your arrival is serendipitous, I feel."

"False Calling?" Nathaniel's eyes dart from Kaidan to Bethany and back. "This is the first we've heard of this Calling being false. What is going on?"

Bethany stopped dead in her steps at that, blood suddenly drawing from her face as she stared at Kaidan, and then back to Nathaniel. "How do you ... how do you know that?"

"Someone who's name will not be a surprise to you, Warden Bethany," Kaidan said, keeping his voice low and glancing between the two. "An ancient darkspawn magister called Corypheus. We've discovered he can manipulate Wardens, and it's him who is causing... it." He pulled a face. "From what you say, I would hazard a guess that Erimond is one of his agents." He had far too many, it seemed.

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