bioticbootyshaker

           Resistance had been expected, but nothing could have prepared Nathaniel for what awaited them once they left the port at Cumberland and pressed north towards the Tevinter Imperium.

          Their journey, at first, was quiet enough. Fifty or so odd men and women marching through the woodlands with only their footfalls and the clink of their armor making any sound. Suspiciously quiet, Nathaniel had thought, and Bethany had echoed his concern, falling in step beside him with her eyes darting between the trees. “There’s been reports of maleficarum in these parts,” she said, hushed, as though to speak above a whisper was to invite danger. “We should keep our guard up.”

          “Look behind me, little girl. We’ve a small army. I did not bring these men for their charm and good looks.”

          Bethany smiled. It was small and tired, and it reminded him that she had gotten as little sleep as he had. She was a courageous girl, and a stubborn one, and he could admire those traits. Still, she prattled on about danger as though Nathaniel were truly so dim as to believe they would reach Weisshaupt without incident. He fully expected an attack, but when it came, he was surprised by it. He hadn’t expected such heavy resistance, or such powerful magic, and when they were finally done and the mages that had ambushed them lay dead or dying, nearly half of his force was decimated.

          “We should have brought more mages,” Bethany said.

          Her pointing out of the obvious did little to improve Nathaniel’s mood.