Dragon Age: Origins — Awakening — Darkspawn in the Wending Woods
In the city of Amaranthine Caelyra had helped the city guard, almost lost Anders to the templars, and helped Nathaniel find his sister. They had also gleaned information about the alleged darkspawn breeding ground, the traders being murdered along the Denerim-Amaranthine trade route, and the possible location of Kristoff the missing Warden.
As much as Caelyra wanted to go and clean out a darkspawn hole, she thought it prudent that they go to the Wending Woods immediately and find out what was happening to the traders and their guards. The economy in Amaranthine could not stagnate. She had to balance being an Arl and being a Grey Warden, and today she needed to be an Arl.
When they arrived in the Wending Woods, new caravans had been destroyed. People's remains lay scattered around the remains of carts and chests. And bandits were picking through everything, trying to find whatever they could score.
The bandits fled as Caelyra and her group stepped into sight.
After inspecting the damage, it was clear that the bandits had not caused this. They were just scavenging after the fact.
Turning deeper into the forest, the bandits regrouped and attacked them.
Then the trees started moving and attacked both the bandits and them.
She had seen this before, back in the Brecilian Forest. There must be elven magic here somewhere.
Investigating further, a man suddenly raced down the path towards them, screaming that someone was after him. The elf was after him. She was going to kill him!
Caelyra tried to ask him what he was going on about, but he was too terrified. Then he stopped, turned around, and looked up... then burst into flames and died.
Caelyra looked up and saw the elf he had been referring to. She looked furious. She demanded to know who Caelyra was — she was evidently no bandit or scavenger, and was too well armoured besides. She must be there to attack her!
Caelyra responded, saying that she was a Grey Warden.
The elf rolled her eyes and let them pass, but said that if she came across any merchants, to tell them to release her sister before she killed more of them. Then vines grew out of the ground, surrounded her, and she vanished.
So it was the elf killing the traders upon this path... Caelyra furrowed her brow and continued investigating.
In the centre of a hill in amongst some ruins were the remains of a Dalish camp. Blood and bones were scattered across the ground and Ferelden weapons were placed very conspicuously around the site. They weren't dropped as though from a fight, but were planted. It was not normal.
Down the hill on the other side, Caelyra came across a man... a man diseased with the darkspawn blight and slowly becoming a ghoul. He still had most of his sense, thankfully, so she was able to ask him some questions.
The first being: did he kill the elves?
No, he did not. They were there to run off the elves but then the darkspawn attacked, and then the darkspawn had taken all of their weapons and planted them around the campsite! They tricked the elf, and now the elf was killing everyone.
Anders was horrified. They had to go find the elf and tell her what had really happened!
While Caelyra was concerned about that, she was also concerned about the darkspawn. They were not acting as they normally would. Not at all.
They raced to the Dalish camp to find the elf, but instead, the elf found them. She yelled at them for not leaving yet, she just wanted to be left alone while she searched for her sister and delivered vengeance upon the men who had taken her.
Caelyra tried to interrupt and inform her that it was the darkspawn, but she wouldn't listen. She brought the trees to life and summoned dozens of wolves to attack, then vanished again.
Once the two trees were down, more wolves came. Waves and waves of wolves came and came until finally they all lay dead.
They had to talk sense into this woman! Or kill her themselves. Caelyra understood that she was grieving, but this was not the way.
They found her at the camp where she stood over the graves of her brethren, downcast. Caelyra tried, once again, to tell her what had really happened... and by some miracle, this time she listened.
Caelyra handed her an elvish trinket she had found on one of the darkspawn and gave it to the elf. The elf looked at it and closed her eyes. It had belonged to her sister. Caelyra offered to help her find her sister, as it was likely she was with the darkspawn, and darkspawn had a habit of turning females into broodmothers... they would not let that happen.
The elf agreed to let them come with her, and told them that her name was Velanna.
There was an abandoned mine nearby which seemed as good a place as any to look for darkspawn, and they headed towards it. Darkspawn poured out of it to stop their approach, but could not best Caelyra or the anger of her new elven friend.
Soon the darkspawn were cleared, and they were able to enter the mines.
It seemed the darkspawn were waiting for them.
As they stepped into the mines, a creepy strange-looking darkspawn appeared, held out his hand, and whispered for them to go to sleep.
Caelyra stirred at one point throughout this sleep where she got a good look upon the creature that had taken them. It was truly unlike any darkspawn she had ever seen!
It told her that her wounds had been tended to, and now she must rest.
They awoke in cells, without their armour or weapons. They had been dressed in common peasant clothing, too. They must've been stripped naked whilst they were asleep. How violating. Caelyra shivered.
Suddenly an elf appeared outside the cells and let them out. It was Velanna's sister. She had a slight ghoul-ish appearance, as though she had been amongst the darkspawn for a while now. She gave them a key and told them where their gear had been stored, they had to hurry and get out of there.
Velanna told her that they would escape together, but she just ran away instead.
Free from their cells, they started exploring this strange darkspawn lair. They wandered into what seemed a torture chamber, or experiment room. Books and bones spread throughout the room as well as scribbles from this strange darkspawn. From it's writings, it called itself The Architect.
Just what had Caelyra stumbled upon?
They continued through the area, taking down darkspawn and dragonlings with their bare hands. Caelyra had never thought of herself as a badass, but she sure did now. Who else could say they punched a dragon to death?
One of the things they killed looked like an elvish ghoul. It wore Velanna's things. Velanna hastily took them back. At least one of them had their weapons and armour back.
In a small cave they found a man with broken legs — a lost Warden! His name was Keenan and he had been taken by the darkspawn the night they had attacked Vigil's Keep, along with several other Wardens. He was the only one left. The strange darkspawn, The Architect, he seemed greatly interested in the Grey Wardens and was performing experiments on them.
Caelyra tried to help him but he was beyond help, he gave her his wedding ring and asked her to take it to his wife in the city, and tell her he died trying to save them all.
Taking his wedding ring and letting him rest in peace upon the cavern floor, Caelyra and her group continued onwards and slowly retrieved their gear from the ghouls.
Soon everyone was re-equipped except Caelyra... finally a ghoul appeared wearing her armour and wielding her weapons and they hurriedly took it down.
At last everyone was prepared once more and ready to fight. Only this time, they wouldn't fall into some sleepy trap.
They wandered into the next area — a great hall of some sort in these ancient ruins beneath the mines — and the Architect, Velanna's sister, and an unknown dwarven woman stood above the area.
The Architect glided his hand through the air and summoned two great dragons to attack them, then watched the fight with interest.
With great strategy and teamwork, they took the dragons down one by one. Then the Architect took the two women into another tunnel and collapsed the wall behind them.
They were gone.
Velanna was horrified. Why had her sister just... gone with that foul creature? And where had they gone?
Caelyra suggested they had gone into the deep roads to find another lair to hide in. Velanna stood at attention and proclaimed that she would become a Grey Warden too, to be able to sense the darkspawn and find her sister. Caelyra warned her that she could die in the process of becoming a Warden, but Velanna did not care. She would do what she must.
So be it.
They needed to return to Vigil's Keep before they sent out a search party, they'd make Velanna a Warden and hope she survived the ordeal, and work out what to do next after this very strange development.
Until next time! ⚔️🐲
I'm not sure but I think I got to try this game at a friend's house, generally speaking it's pretty good hehe.
Salu2 😎
I remember when my mother-in-law was breaking her head every time she faced a dragon in this video game, she really loved it and she could finish them 100%, I was there when she faced the final boss.