Dragon Age: Origins - Kyrie's Adventure

Chapter Five - The Newest Recruit

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Not a single word of congratulations was said to me once I was on my feet again. Duncan and Alistair shared a short conversation, stealing glances at me every now and then. Duncan knelt down beside Daveth’s body a moment later, and Alistair came up to me, placing a hand on the small of my back.

“Come on,” he muttered in a soothing tone. “I’ll help you get settled in.”

I allowed him to lead me down the small incline, down the broken steps, and past the group of men sitting by the fire. When we reached the next incline, I came to an abrupt stop, causing Alistair to pause.

“What is it?”

I glared at him, making him give me a startled look. “You don’t have to do that.”

He blinked a few times, clearly confused. “What are you talking about?”

“This coddling thing,” I growled, swatting his arm away from me. “You don’t need to keep tabs on me anymore, alright?”

“You just underwent your Joining,” he responded, eyes narrowing slightly. “You’re going to be fatigued for the next few hours. And seeing as both Daveth and Jory didn’t make it...” He trailed off, casting his gaze to the side. He took a deep breath before locking his eyes with mine. “Duncan wants me to look after you until we’re sure you’re alright.”

“I’m fine,” I growled.

I turned away from him, starting to go down the incline. About halfway down, the entire world began to spin violently. I swayed and tried to keep my footing, but wound up falling over the side of the incline. The ground was a short distance, though it was neither soft nor comfortable. Plus, I hit my shoulder rather hard, sending a wave of pain through the covered wound that I’d forgotten about until, well, that moment. With a groan, I grabbed the wound and sat up.

“Want to say that again?”

I glared up into Alistair’s amused face as he came up to my side. He stood over me with his arms crossed, simply watching as I sat in pain.

“Shut up, Shem.”

He cracked a grin before helping me to my feet. I glared darker at him as he placed his hand on the small of my back once again, but allowed him to lead me on.

“Are you hungry?” he asked conversationally.

We had just passed a group of men sitting around a fire, each with a bowl of something. Alistair must have noticed the longing look I was giving them. I glanced at him, narrowing my eyes when I saw the amusement in his, and stubbornly turned away again.

“I’ve got food in my pack. I don’t need any shem food.”

“You make it sound like we’re just a pack of dogs.”

I glanced at him, surprised to see the hurt in his eyes. “I just don’t trust others that easily, let alone a bunch of shems.”

“But you’re one of us now.” He cleared his throat awkwardly as I glared at him. “One of the Grey Wardens, I mean. It’s not like our food will kill you.”

“Couldn’t do any more harm than the Joining did.”

He gave me a completely serious look before he burst into laughter. This lasted for quite some time, earning a few stares from the soldiers scattered around the camp. We even had to stop walking so he could bend over and catch his breath. I was really beginning to wonder if he was alright in the head.