The Royal Palace (Open)

[Alistair Theirin]

Within the city of Denerim lies the royal palace to the King and Queen, here they live, eat and sleep and during daytime the doors are open for those allowed to speak with the King and Queen, always guarded by the most skilled and loyal fighters.

Once entering the Royal palace one steps into the first hall, a room filled with four pillars holding the roof up, standing two and two on both sides of the open floor that leads to the second door. The place is guarded by four guards and those who wish to enter must disarm themselves of carrying weapons. The room also holds a bench on each side of the room, where one may sit and wait for those inside to come out.

After being allowed to enter the second door, one steps into the main hall. In the far end one may see the steps up toward the throne of the King and on each side of the room there are balconies, often used by the nobles during the landsmeet. The Queen and the advisor holds no throne next to the one of the King, but are required to stand next by, in case the King needs their help. The long road toward the steps of the throne are guarded by eight guards, four on each side, and then another two behind the King`s throne.

On the left and right side of the main hall lies the rooms’ belonging to the King and Queen, the court and the servants. The royal chambers, sleeping quarters, storage rooms, the dining hall, kitchen and more.

[blakedawsland]

Denerim, the beating heart of Ferelden, were it ten years ago the entire city would have been enthralled with chaos and devastation, now there’s hardly and damage still visible and the wounds of war healed. People walked about living out their daily lives, washing clothes, selling off their wears for anyone and everyone, even a few guards took the time to relax and play a little game with the children though Maker only knows what would happen to them should their Lieutenant see them. Elves ran to and fro, either doing their job or just enjoying the cobblestone and dirt roadways that spider webbed the city. Even a few nobles stumbled out of the famed Pearl with blushed faces and sweaty clothing. All in all, people were at peace, completely ignoring the growing tension throughout the rest of the world with the war between the Templers and the Mages and the betrayal of the Grey Wardens in the Anderfels; which was the reason for this visit to the capital.

Marching down the final stretch to the Palace of the King and Queen was a formation of Grey Wardens, the seal of the Griffon on each of their sapphire blue and white uniforms and armor. At the lead of the pack was their Captain, his armor plates bordered by gold as was the griffon on his chest and shield, on his belt swung a spike mace that looked old and heavily used. The others were armed with their weapons of choice, ranging from bows, daggers, swords and hammers, one of which carried not one or two, but three swords, one on his back and two on his belt. Behind the slit in the bright helmet and under the hood that covered it, dark blue eyes scanned the entirety of the surrounding as heavy leather boots marched their way along the cobblestone.

Junior Warden Blake Dawsland was in awe by the city, though it paled in comparison to his home Starkhaven, he took it all in as the two columns of five made their final approach into the main halls, their Captain leading the way behind a helmet of his own, which he promptly removed to great the gate keepers, revealing a black strip of cloth to cover his left eye and a deep scar running the length of his face. Blake was too distracted to hear what he said, aside from the order to march onward past the heavy wooden doors that lay ahead. As they walked in, others removed their cowls and helmets, Blade did the same and held his helmet under his left arm as they walked in step toward the thrown. The Captain went forward with two others, his Lieutenants, to greet the King. The others fanned out and stood at attention in two straight lines, Nobles all over the place stood shocked at the display of weapons and Wardens, but they were to be soon subsided by the King’s words.

Maker Blake wanted to put his helmet back on, the fresh tattoo over his right eye was red and sore but orders were orders… he also had the undesirable urge to raise some form of “fun”, but he had to say at attention. By Andraste’s Flaming Tits he wanted to leave and have a good time, this meeting of pleasantries couldn’t go fast enough!

[Alistair Theirin]

(The thread known as Rumors Abound are now moved to continue here.)

By just looking at Anora, Alistair could see Anora was annoyed because of him. She really did not like him strolling off as he did; talking to other people, staying overnight at another`s place, in ways a king should not behave at all, an especially a king who was married. Alistair felt dumb for what he just had said and done, but it did not change the fact that he enjoyed staying with the Empress, she was very friendly to him, and somehow he felt great affection for her. With a look of worry he listened to what Anora said and in return he replied. “Yes, yes, a very dumb thing of me to do. It will not happen again, nor will I dress myself in any fancy dresses.” Alistair promised and suddenly noticed a bunch of people beginning to gather around them, more and more coming to see what was happening. It was no chance of hiding now, Alistair thought, now every citizen in Denerim would know what had happened. Though before he was able to say anything, Anora turned and spoke instead, reassuring the people that everything was well and that they all should return to their duties, even she herself and the king. Saved by Anora`s excellent speech, Alistair followed her back to their palace, where discussions with the nobles now awaited them.

Once they arrival the main hall of their palace, Alistair noticed a great crowd of nobles whom had gathered and they were all anxious to hear from the King and the Queen, wanting answers, though yelling and screaming at each other, arguing between themselves without the presence of the royalties. With a troubled look Alistair went passed the crowd with Anora in the lead and they both headed toward the throne, which was in the far end of the entrance door. As Anora had done outside, she raised her voice once again and made clear that they would settle the matters at hand. While she stepped to stand beside the throne, Alistair went to sit down upon it and with a gaze upon the nobles, it became silent.

Then the first case was brought up considered the Empress whom had been given the estate in Denerim, she had come from Orlais to escape a civil war and now she found herself in the care of the Fereldens, an outrage that had made many of the nobles angry and frustrated. The notion was then followed by a frustrated elf who complained about the land that had been given the elves in the Korcari Wilds, somehow they were now unhappy with the land, most due to the reasons it was plagued by the devastation of the Blight. Anora looked at Alistair which spoke that she wanted him to handle this the best way, although she seemed to doubt him. Then as Alistair was to reply, an Orlesian emissary stepped forth from the crowd and he was not very pleased. “Your Majesty, I`ve come from the Empire of Orlais with word from Grand Duke Gespard de Chalon. He demands you to give us the Empress so that justice can be done, refuse and things may get worse for you Ferelden`s.” The Orlesian spoke in their typical dialect, though the demand was followed by an even angrier mob of nobles, thinking that if the King did not hand the Empress over then Ferelden could once again face war with the Empire. “Silence!” Alistair shouted and stood up from the throne, braver than he previously had been thinking this was indeed troubling, but something had to be said. “I know very well what is happening in Orlais! Their civil war is tearing their country apart because of some foolish noble wants to claim the title Emperor….Now I have spoken to the Empress, and I will not deny her refuge here in Ferelden, nor will I hand her over to the Grand Duke. The reasons however remain my own, for now.” Alistair spoke out loud and then returned to sit down on the throne, watching as the nobles grew even angrier. “Please, tell your Grand Duke that we refuse this demand, and that he may try and come and claim her if he wants a war, but then he should know that we wishes to stay neutral and that if he goes to war, then the blood of innocents will be on his hands.” Alistair spoke lightly and with care, seeing that the Orlesian emissary was annoyed and left angered, leaving the nobles again arguing with themselves

Once the Orlesian left, Alistair remained to respond to the elf and he spoke with a gentle tone. “My apologize to you and your kin, I did not mean to give you a bad piece of land, it`s my fault and now your people is suffering by it. However I will help you, hearing that the Blight has caused you difficulties grieves me…though I cannot give you a new land, instead I`ll help you with food and supplies the best way we can.” Then just as he finished, the doors again opened in the far end and forth stepped a group of Gray Wardens, all seeming determined to speak with the King. The nobles was shocked, because it was not often they saw Gray Wardens in the main hall. Quietly they all watched, waiting for the King, Queen or the Wardens to speak.

[Queen Anora Theirin]

Anora watched in silence as Alistair declared he would not give up the Empress of Orlais to the Grand Duke's emissary. While she did not like the idea of Celene staying in Ferelden any longer, she also did not like what she knew of Gespard de Chalon. If they did give her to him, who was to say that Gespard would not simply attack Ferelden anyway? If they shielded her from her would-be murderer however, she would be indebted to them, which may prevent a future attack. At least for a little while. The rumors about Celene and Alistair would just have to be dealt with later, true or not.

"And if we were to hand the Empress over to the Grand Duke, what then? What assurance do we have that things would not 'get worse' for us Fereldens?" Anora's chilled tones seemed to resonate throughout the room, "We have none, and we will accept no false promises of our people's safety. I have heard of your Grand Duke Gespard. He is a foolish, bloodthirsty man who kills his supposed friends and loved ones without reason. He is tearing his country apart, and all for revenge on one person. He is pathetic, and we shall most certainly not support someone like him. Now go you pitiful dog, and run back to your master," she hissed before turning her attention from him.

She nodded and smiled ever-so-slightly in support of Alistair's decision on how to help the elves, then looked at the doors as they burst open to reveal a group of Grey Wardens. "Grey Wardens, welcome to Denerim. What news do you bring?" She asked in a welcoming, but curious tone, all traces of her former malice gone. She could see the nobles in the hall were curious as well, it was not often that Grey Wardens 'graced' these halls.

[blakedawsland]

When the Warden Captain stood about 3 meters away from the king, he and his Lieutenants took a respectful bow and the Captain spoke, “I am Warden Captain Wilhelm Gregory, of the Wardens stationed in the Anderfels, and we have come for aid from you, my Majesty. It is common knowledge that you are a… Former Grey Warden, but we both know one cannot cast aside the Taint as easily as a genlock. But what we ask for is not an army, but rather a Neutral party, to enact a Binding Arbitration.” Wilhelm said his words seemed to reverberate off the walls and some of the Nobles grew edgy, this was slowly becoming a tense situation; first was an Orlesian Noble demanding the Return of the Empress, then a Representative of the Elves asking for new land, and now Grey Wardens asking for aid… “My Lord, if it would be too much to ask just say so, but we would also beseech the aid of either the Warden Commander or the Hero of Ferelden, now more than ever we are in need of a leader and diplomat to sooth the civil war ravaging our home and country.”

Blake resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the trought of “Binding Arbitration”, he and his father had to do that once or twice on their pilgrimage to the Anderfels… it normally didn’t end well for one side. Only moving his eyes, he saw that the Orlesian Noble’s face twisted in anger a little, but if he tried to attack any of the Wardens out of anger, he’d get a quick sword though the abdomen. Still, this plea wasn’t the only one being sent out, two more groups traveled to the Free Marches and the Orlesian Empire, and obviously Ferelden was the highest priority for the Wardens due to the King’s cut ties to the Wardens. At the same time any deal maid would probably favor the Wardens Independence and protect their freedom from the Anders King. Even if all else fails, they could gather strength behind the Hero of Ferelden or Warden Commander Howe, and aid would be assured then. But in Blake’s mind the biggest obstacle to overcome won’t the King’s reluctance to aid a common friend, but the Queen’s political influence.

[Alistair Theirin]

The angry outburst from Anora at the Orlesian emissary surprised Alistair, but it was not unexpected of her to act in such a way. Her father Loghain had held the same grudge for all the Orlesians, but it was more surprising to see that she defended the King`s wishes in the support of holding the Empress in Ferelden, rather than giving her to the Grand Duke. Perhaps she believed the Empress was not as bad that she had thought, it made however Alistair curious to know.

Seeing the Gray Wardens once again and in the main hall of the palace created nostalgia to Alistair, it made him remember his past and what the Gray Wardens stood for, and by seeing them in all their grand stature it made him miss the good old times. Oh how he wished Duncan was there, for years had he fought beside him and now he was gone, even his friend Aedan Cousland whom had aided him in ending the Blight. It had left Alistair to rule Ferelden almost alone, with a wife who seemed to hate him. Alistair disliked his new life, but being King was needed for peace to remain in Ferelden. As the Warden Captain approached with his lieutenants, he watched as they bowed before him and Queen and he listened curiously to what the Captain had to say. The group of nobles went silent and they too listened, but once the captain had finished speaking, they again began to talk with each other and one could feel the tension rising within the hall.

Standing up from the throne once again, Alistair looked across the Gray Wardens now standing in front of him and he knew what they spoke of. Even him being a King, one could not remove the fact that the taint that remained within him, one day he would as any Warden need to go and die in the Deep Roads, killing as many Darkspawn he could before falling himself. It was a fate he feared, but it was the best solution. “Welcome my Warden friends; I must say it is a great sight…seeing the mark of the griffon once again.” Alistair replied with a gentle tone and took a moment to think things through, if he would lend them support and it went wrong than it would could cause trouble between the two kingdoms, but done the right way it could benefit them all. Alistair moved toward Anora and with a look at her he wanted to know what she thought, but before she could say anything he turned and continued. “I hear you seeking aid, and as a former Warden I feel bonded to help you. In fact I will.” With those words spoken the nobles within the hall grew even more restless and many wanted to speak, though Alistair held his hand up as a sign, telling them he would continue to speak. “If I knew where my friend was, the hero of Ferelden then I would send him with you, but knowing that he is gone and the Warden Commander Howe is currently absent, then I will lend you support the best way I can. Though I am curious, I have heard about the civil war in Anderfels, but what exactly is happening to the Wardens?...” He said and asked curiously, wanting to know how his friends were doing in the Anderfels.

[blakedawsland]

“It is hard to describe your majesty,” The Captain continued, “What has happened is that we have been put to blame in part for the death of the King, and his Prince has all but declared war on the Order. What has happened most recently was that some of our more trained wardens stopped a group of assassins from killing the First Warden, but we haven’t found who hired them. In another instance a band of angry farmers rioted at the gates of the Fortress, and forced our hands to attack. Similar to what happened in Vigil’s keep from what I’ve heard.” The captain bowed his head; one warden was killed in the Riot… the same one who tried to propose peace. “And those who support us are brutally attacked by the new King’s men, soon full scale war will break out and the Wardens may no longer be able to stay neutral. Which I why we came here to ask for your aid, some of the more elder Wardens propose we move the high command somewhere else, but the First Warden has the last say on that and no decision has been made.”

Blake continued to scan the crowd, his weapons weren’t tied he knew at some point that if tensions grew higher he may need to use them. He decided to take in the surroundings a little more than before; the palace was very beautiful, lot of oak and other wood used to build the furnishings and the green banners with the royal seal on them. At least the Captain was putting up a good case, though he knew that the King was all for it. Now the only problem was the Queen… and the fact that she hadn’t said anything aside from greeting them was rather odd.

[Alistair Theirin]

After the response of the Gray Warden Captain, the tension rose within the hall, every noble began to discuss between themselves and they all was eager to hear what the King and Queen would reply. Would they really offer aid to these foreigners, or would they dismiss it. By only looking at Alistair one could tell that he was eager to aid them, but somehow he seemed reluctant considering the look which Anora gave him. Although before the Queen were allowed to reply, Alistair eagerly took the chance to speak, answering the request of the Gray Wardens. “It grieves me to hear that such a fate has fallen upon the Gray Wardens in Anderfels, and should you wish to move your high command then you would be more than welcome here in Ferelden, though I would like to see the trouble resolved in Anderfels, before you make such a decision. Therefor I will accompany you, I will travel with you to Anderfels and I will speak with this new King.” Alistair spoke in excitement, thinking it could be a great opportunity to leave the palace and to travel as he once had done before. He had missed the freedom, the freedom of being alone, to fight and to hold no alliance to none except the Gray Warden order.

As Alistair made his statement, he went to sit down upon the throne once again, knowing that the nobles and his Queen would reject him from traveling. Though he had spoken and he wanted to go, because the life he now lived was boring to him. Looking across the hall, Alistair could see how angry the nobles became and some of them even left, some tried to convince the King otherwise and some became frustrated at the Wardens, though they dared not to attack them, because they knew how well trained the Wardens were. “My Majesty, you cannot leave Ferelden! We need you here! And there are so many topics that we need to discuss with you, concerning the Empress, the Elves, the people…Who should rule if you left, or worse if you died!” Arl Wulf spoke loudly out of the crowd, approaching the steps toward the throne, both angry and frustrated, looking at the King with a serious glare. Alistair was surprised by how the nobles acted and especially Arl Wulf, in return the King replied calmly. “Anora will rule while I`m gone, and I will return, once the situation in Anderfels have been handled.”

(Anora`s turn next I believe. )

[Queen Anora Theirin]

Anora stood silently as the Warden Captain told them of their plight. Before she could make her thoughts on the matter known however, Alistair vowed to lend his support. Not surprisingly, the nobles were upset about this. She was too of course. While she quite liked the idea of ruling alone, she did not think it wise for Alistair to leave Ferelden at the moment. As Arl Wulf had said, they had many issues to resolve in Ferelden at the moment, and the people would surely not be pleased if one of their rulers left the country when there were so many concerns to take care of in Ferelden. It also may not bode well with the people, or with her, if her left while they had foreign nobility 'visiting'. If his visit with the new King and Queen of the Anderfels did not go well he could end up putting Ferelden in danger, and they were already in trouble with the Orliesan Empire. He could either continue sheltering the Empress of Orlais, or he could go to the Anderfels, but he couldn't have both. She simply would not let him.

She sent Alistair an unimpressed look. "I am with Arl Wulf in this matter husband. It is more than obvious, simply by looking around the room, that the people of Ferelden would not be at all pleased if you left for the Anderfels. Besides that, we do not know much about these new rulers' characters. It would be most unwise to send one of the most valuable people in our kingdom into their lands without further insight." She told him calmly. She was not about to let him march off to another country now, and certainly not just to relieve his younger days. The people of Ferelden were obviously on her side in this, which boosted her confidence. She kept her eyes on her husband, waiting for his reply. Waiting to see if he would go ahead and do what he wished, regardless of her wishes or the wishes of the nobles around him

[Alistair Theirin]

"Do not worry Anora, nor should you nobles. I will have the best guardians in Thedas at my back, these Wardens." Alistair replied out loud with echoing voice that went through the hall, looking at looked at the Gray Wardens whom stood at the steps of the stairs, believing them to be trustworthy and the best of comrades in arms. He had of fought alongside them once before, not the same people who now stood in front of him, but the same order, and he doubted they would have changed much. The Gray Wardens had held their traditions for centuries and Alistair knew he could trust them, no matter what anyone said. He knew that some did not like the Gray Wardens, most because they all was a bunch of criminals, outlaws, thieves or others with great talents. There was no difference between them, one could be any class or from any country, but they all would fight under one banner.

"And trust me; I will not let anything happen that can harm my country and people. Even if I left, you would still have the best woman to settle your concerns and your matters. I trust Anora completly and I believe she would rule Ferelden great while I`m gone." Alistair continued to speak and stood up, looking at Anora with a smile as went over to her, taking her hands in his, wanting her to accept his wish; even she felt frustrated about the matter. Though was it not what she wanted? Did she not desire to rule alone? Since the day he became king and since the day they had married, she had held a grudge against him, perhaps it was because of her father, although it seemed more than that. Now he gave her the opportunity to rule in his place, at least until he returned and with a look deep into Anora`s eyes, he wanted her to accept.

In the background the nobles grew even angrier and more frustrated, the tension lied in the air and they looked upon the royal couple as they awaited Anora or any other to break the silence. The nobles did not want Alistair to leave, because they thought Ferelden needed him, even they supported Anora the most.

[blakedawsland]

The King had pledged his Support! It took everything Blake had not to let out a deep sigh of relief… but the nobles were close to an Up-roar. Continuing to look around with his eyes, he saw the Captain take an appropriate step away from the King and Queen, left arm cradling his winged helmet, the other resting on his sword. The Lieutenants were at his flanks standing in a similar manner, just waiting for that first angry Noble to charge any of their order. While this didn’t come yet, everyone waited still, for either the Captain to order them out of the castle or for them to draw steel and defend this foreign king, but Blake wasn’t ready for an Angry Mob like this one proposed, but when the orders came he would follow them. It didn’t take long for the nobles to cry out in anger after the King responded to the Queen’s words, now it seemed that things would boil over and a riot was to come. Either the King wasn’t involved with Politics all that much or they just outright hated him.

[Alistair Theirin]

Anora was silent and she seemed speechless after what Alistair had said and asked, with a smile he looked at her and before she could reply to him he turned to face the crowd of nobles and the Gray Wardens once again. Seeing they were restless and curious of what Anora would answer, but Alistair noticed the tension between the nobles and the Gray Wardens grew and he could see that they were all preparing for the worst, as if a noble would storm out and attack them. "I will accompany you Gray Wardens and I will leave Anora as regent of Ferelden, until I return." Alistair spoke with a voice that echoed and just as he had said so, the entire crowd of nobles grew angrier and more frustrated, starting to leave the hall as if they had lost all hope in their king, almost pleading their Queen to save their land from a King who knew nothing of ruling.

Then all of sudden, out of frustration and anger a noble man became desperate and in an instant he chose to attack the Gray Wardens. He drew his knife from beneath his clothes where he had hidden it from the guards, and he came at the Gray Warden Captain, charging him with the knife held high. He cried out as he ran at the Warden, screaming. "Die demon!" determined to bring them a message. The news of what had happened in Anderfels had reached most parts in Thedas, and this noble new very well what the Gray Wardens had been claimed as. The new King of Anderfels had blamed the Gray Wardens for killing his father, but he had also claimed them to be an order that used Blood Magic. Because of that, many Templars had chosen to support the King of Anderfels and it had brought many people to bring justice in their name throughout the known world.

Alistair stood shock and in awe crying out as the noble charged the Wardens "Nooo!" afraid that the man would kill the Gray Warden Captain and cause a greater chaos. King Alisatir stood to far away from stopping the man and the guards were just noticing what happened when the man came running with a knife. The only one who seemed could stop the noble from killing, would have to be one of the Gray Wardens, but would they react in time?...Alistair and the Guards ran to reach out, to stop the noble, only to witness the fate that spilled out in front of them.

(Feel free to kill the noble Blake. )

[Queen Anora Theirin]

Anora appeared calm as the nobles' protests grew louder and louder. Alistair's words had done nothing to clam them. While she knew that many supported her more than Alistair, a fact she was a little smug about, she also knew that Ferelden did not want to lose their King. However, she was being presented with the chance to rule on her own, without Alistair, for a time. She would be lying if she said that the idea was not tempting. For another thing, she did not hold the Grey Wardens in the highest of esteem either. She recognized the benefits of having them around during a Blight, but there was no Blight to speak of now and having the Grey Wardens present now did not seem very important. They had bases in places such as Vigil's Keep, and as long as they remained out of her sight until they were needed again she was perfectly happy. As to the nobles concerns, if Alistair died while traveling with the Wardens...well so much the better.

Well if he wanted to intrust his life to a bunch of people he had never met, she wouldn't try to stop him any longer. So with a heavy sigh she said, "Very well husband, if you are so determined to help these Wardens, you have my blessing. Do be careful won't you?" she finished raising an eyebrow and giving him a look to let him know it was not a request. While she wasn't opposed to the idea of him dying, she also knew that many people knew her relationship with her husband was not even close to friendship, and the nobles who favored Alistair may try to blame her for somehow engineering his death. Of course, when she thought about it, that idea didn't sound to bad either. Before she could though she would have to at least appear to care about Alistair.

Then she turned to the people, who had given up hope that their queen would talk their king out of his idea. "Good people of Ferelden, I know that you are worried about our king, so am I. But can we abandon these Wardens to the fate the King of the Anderfels wishes on them? Need I remind you that it was the Grey Wardens who saved us from the Archdemon? Who rid us of the Blight? We owe their Order a debt, one we have not paid in ten years. I ask you to stand with me, and to support our king as he undertakes this dangerous task, and to show that even in these troubled times we are a strong people, and a united people. As we have always been." She said in hopes that it would calm some of them down. She watched, narrowing her eyes as a noble charged toward the Wardens, briefly wondering what would happen.

[blakedawsland]

The King was with them! Finally some results from this whole mess, Blake and the other wardens took in a sigh of relief, now they may well have a means to an end of the hatred from the People of the Anderfels. Now they finally had the right person to do the job, and even though the Queen seemed glad to have a holiday away from her husband, but then again… what Wife wouldn’t? It would be interesting to talk with the King on the trip back, and it would defiantly be interesting to see his reunion with some of the wardens who said they knew him. Unfortunately, one of the nobles disagreed… very, very much. Bursting from the crowd with a dagger in hand, he was too far away from the wardens with swords draws to get him before he hit the Captain, same with the archer’s to draw their bow, let alone notch an arrow. But Blake could to one better than that… moving quicker than he had before, his right hand was barley visible as he drew a small throwing knife and threw it at the Noble’s knee. The blade pierced and though the other side easily, and the man fell to the ground. Determined to be the first one there, Blake ran behind him, pulling him up by his hair and holding one of his swords to this throat and looked up at his Captain in his eye. “By your order Captain, this bastard will die.” Blake said, his hood was up to hide himself from the other nobles.

The captain looked down at the man, knowing that if he tried to move the razor edge of the sword would cut his throat, “This isn’t our nation my young friend. Your Majesty, this decision will be yours King Alistair simply give or belay the order as you see fit.” Clearly the Captain didn’t care either way, Blake had yet to execute someone on command, but he knew it would be inevitable. He just hoped the fact that the man wouldn’t be able to walk again would be punishment enough.

[Alistair Theirin]

As Anora seemed to agree on Alistair`s wish, he was pleased and satisfied that she looked at it his way, although it made him curious, what was her intentions. Did she simply agree because she then was allowed to rule alone without him, or was there something else hidden within her mind, Alistair could not tell, but he knew she hated him. As she blessed him with her approval, he simply nodded back in return before turning to the crowd. Although even she tried to calm the people down afterwards, it did not work when most of them began to leave the hall, and when a noble charged the Gray Warden Captain. Alistair was in shock and awe as he tried to reach the noble from attacking, but gladly the Gray Warden Captain was saved by one of his companions, one who seemed quick and agile as he threw a small throwing knife in the Noble`s knee, stopping him from completing his attempt.

Seeing the young Warden run to grab the fallen noble and seeing his hood fall back, made everyone see the young Warden`s face and tattoo which seemed sore and red across his eye. Alistair felt intrigued, but noticed the young Warden was patient and would kill the noble at command, even he still seemed new to the killing. Listening to what the Gray Warden Captain said, Alistair was given the chance to order the fate of the noble, something Alistair he had not wished to do, but knowing that the man had tried to assassinate his guests would need to have some consciences of some sort, if not then he would be seen as a weak King.

Approaching where the young Warden stood holding the noble by the hair, Alistair came to look closer, standing beside the Gray Warden Captain who were on his left side, awaiting the King`s orders. Seeing how much pain the noble was in and how angry he was at the King, even noticing that he was crying, made Alistair feel nothing else but pity for the man, even his intentions had been cruel minded. The noble shouted at the King, swearing that that if he went to the Anderfels with the Gray Wardens, a grim fate would await him and Ferelden. What he meant by it, Alistair did not understand, though believed that it could be because of the Mage-Templar War that was tearing Thedas apart, or because of something else, something closer within the palace he did not know of.

“No, don’t kill him. He will feel the conveniences, but not death. Clean his wounds and put him in the dungeon.” Alistair spoke and ordered, telling the guards to come and bring the noble and put him in the dungeons at Dragon`s Fort. With that said, Alistair turned his attention back to the Gray Warden Captain, seeing that all nobles had left the hall, only leaving the King and the Queen with the Wardens and the Guards. “Meet me at the docks two days from now, and I will have a ship and a crew ready for our journey north.” Alistair spoke calm and gentle, before he turned to walk back up the stairs toward the throne, approaching his Queen and wife Anora with a slight smile.

(Hey Blake and Anora, feel free to post in a ship prepared thread. Alistair, Blake and the others is about to leave.)