Dragon Age: Origins | The story behind Cousland

Chapter 1- Awakening

Chapter 1- Awakening

"Warden Commander,

With the death of the archdemon, the Blight was defeated... but the darkspawn did not simply disappear. Most of the horde scattered north from Denerim towards the Coastlands... and there fractured into warring tribes. The region fell into chaos as the darkspawn emerged from hidden lairs to terrorize the countryside. As the new Warden-Commander of Ferelden, it is your responsibility to rebuild the order and deal with the lingering threat."

It isn't signed, but I guess it should be someone important. As Mhairi and I moved through the mud, I folded the paper and put it back in my pouch. I look at the rain that now started to lowly pour out of the sky. "This is Howe's land, isn't it?" I asked the women.

"Yes, Your Grace." She answers politely.

"So the darkspawn are now organizing in cults? They should be retreating into the deep roads." I deeply sigh. "And I thought I would spend some time with Alistair and Duncan."

Mhairi gives me a compassionate smile that I don't return. I look into the distance, seeing through the fog the huge building. But no one is here and Mhairi seems to notice that, too. "What is going on? Why are there no Wardens here to greet us?"

"Something's wrong. Stay on your guard." I mutter. Just as I said that a man comes screaming towards us, behind him some darkspawn chasing him. I get by bow out and shoot one of them, after that pulling my daggers out from my leather holder I jab one of them in the chest as Mhairi uses her shield to keep them back. The man now kicks a darkspawns head as hard as he can with his maul. "Stop," I gently tell him and take his maul. "It's dead."

"It's you! The Hero and Queen of Ferleden! Oh, thank the Maker!"

"Where are the other Wardens?"

"There was someone right behind me, a mage! He might have been a Warden, I don't know." The man says as he glances behind him. "All I heard were screams and people dying; I got out as fast as I could and ran into these..." He mutters, looking at the dead darkspawn. "You need to help them. You need to do something!"

I sigh and run my fingers through my brown hair. "Run for help." I tell him as I move forward.

"We don't have a lot of time, Commander." Mhairi tells me.

I shake my head, pensively. "The darkspawn launched a sneak attack. That's unheard of."

Her blue eyes are looking at me, filled with concern. "This isn't a Blight. How could they be so organized? I don't understand."

"Perhaps something else is leading them," I mutter.

She frowns. "Other than an archdemon, you mean? Frightening thought."

I don't respond. We fight through some waves of darkspawn and then get into the burning building. I cough, and move my hands, trying to get the smoke out of the way. Opening a door, I see a mage killing a hurlock, and besides him two templar bodies and some more darkspawn ones. When the blond man notices us he gives me and awkward smile. "Er... I didn't do it." I raise my eyebrows. "Oh, don't get me wrong. I'm not broken up about them dying, to be perfectly honest. Biff there made the funniest gurgle when he went down." He tells us, chuckling, while showing us a templar on the ground.