Shameboner - Battles

[miri1984]

Title: Battles
Words: 1800
Characters: Anders, Saoirse, Carver, Varric, Justice
Rating: T+ for language
Summary: Rock wraiths and treasure.

Part of him was enjoying being down here, even though they were trapped with very little chance of getting out, even with the mage wincing and mumbling every time they ran across that red lyrium or went into a room that was too small - Maker, they'd been in caverns that made the man twitch - it almost made him wander exactly what the Templars had done to make him so… no, don't think about that…

He felt useful. He was good at killing darkspawn, he's found. Good at being out the front of their little party, taking advantage of Saoirse's ice magic, dodging her fireballs, scything through the flimsy, pieced together armour of hurlocks with his sword like it was soft fruit.

It was when he took down the ogre that he started to feel his confidence rise past the point it had been since the day Beth died. This time he hadn't been young and hopeless and afraid and everything he'd despised about himself since Ostagar. That Saoirse had also failed that day had been the only thing that made it bearable - but even that had the sting of mother blaming her and not him.

It was not the relief it should have been.

He wanted to be the one blamed.

"What is this place?" he heard his sister asking Varric. They'd been traveling for days since Bartrand's betrayal - running into darkspawn and profane and mouthy abominations (not counting Anders) and conversation was rare.

"This is the vault," Varric's voice. "The dwarves would have brought their…" The noise of rocks bashing together was the stuff of nightmares, all the more frightening for being slow and measured thumps rather than the rapid patter that would signify the cavern collapsing about them. This was… something that thought. Rocks with malice. "….Oh, that can't be good," Varric finished. Saoirse said something in reply but it was lost in the noise that was quickly becoming deafening.

Not good on any level and when the massive rock-wraith took form in front of him Carver had a moment of abject terror before adrenalin kicked in and he started to attack.

"Carver!" Anders' voice was hoarse with strain, already. "It's held together with magic - don't bother attacking the rock, just the fire within."

He nodded, shifting Celene in his grip and lunging foward, ducking under one massive rock fist as it slammed into the ground, knocking Varric off his feet. The dwarf scrambled away, desperately looking for higher ground from which to effectively use Bianca, despite that the crossbows' arrows bounced ineffectually off the rock carapace of the magical beast.

He dodged, weaved and struck, again, and again and again. Magic seemed to bounce through the cavern with little or no reason, and even though he knew both Anders and Saoirse were experienced enough not to hit him by accident he still found himself wincing when a fireball or rock fist shot past him. Nothing could ever make one used to fighting with magic, he was of that firm opinion and always had been…

"Profane!" Saoirse's voice was penetrating.

"I'll deal with them," Anders shouted back, "concentrate on the big one."

Carver felt heat on his back as lightning arced from Profane to Profane, destroying the connectors between their limbs and collapsing them into harmless piles of rocks. He felt a surge of energy - Anders flooding him with magical vitality - as he lunged forward, trying to sever those same connectors on the massive wraith as Saoirse attempted to slow it with ice spells, and then he leapt, aiming for the glowing red centre. He wasn't fast, but he was fast enough for this, and as he plunged his sword into the nexus of energy he let out an almighty yell, the impact enough to shake his very bones.

When he came back to himself, kneeling on the rock floor of the cavern, he was suddenly aware of Varric's voice - faint, lacking confidence - different entirely from the dwarf's usual cocky surety.

"Blondie, I hope you can sodding heal this or Bianca is going to emasculate you."

"Shut up, Varric," Sisi's voice was choked with what sounded like tears. "We've got you."

Carver turned to them, only just resisting the urge to point out that he'd brought down the biggest thing they'd ever fought - including that sodding dragon at the bone pit, to see Anders and his sister crowded around Varric who…

Carver swallowed. The wraith had stood on him, that much was obvious.

It was the kind of wound you didn't get up from. Even with magical help.

"What happened?" he asked. Anders glanced up at him.

"We hardly have time for explanations, Carver," he said shortly.

He wanted to snarl at the mage - it seemed he was always finding ways to get under his skin - but as much as he hated to admit it - it really wasn't the time.

"I don't have any lyrium," Saoirse was saying, desperation crowding out the tears. "Anders… I can't…"

"There's lyrium everywhere down here," Carver grumbled. "Beats me why you can't use that…"

The look the two mages gave each other was suddenly intense.

"Justice…" Anders said, voice hesitant. "Justice could use it."

"But you can't call him at will."

"…I don't… I'm not sure. To be honest, I've never really tried… I'm too scared of what…"

"Blondie if your blue friend can fix my legs I'll risk it," Varric coughed. "Just… try not to kill the rest of us while you're doing it. Don't fancy walking up to the surface on my own."

"Varric… I might…"

"Shut up Anders," Saoirse was taking charge, and part of him - a part he would never consciously acknowledge - was relieved. "We'll deal with Justice if it comes to that."

Anders face was anguished. "Shei you don't know…"

"Abominations? I kill ten before breakfast. Did actually, today, I do believe. And Varric will die. You don't want that and I don't believe Justice does either."

"Sister I don't think…"

"Carver you be handy with that damned sword of yours. You've been itching to hit him since we got down here - if things go bad you'll have your chance."

"Somehow the idea that you'll be giving your brother permission to hit me isn't very reassuring, Shei…" Anders said, and there was a definite note of fondness in his tone. When had he started calling her that?

"I could always hit you now mage."

"Carver, be a good arseface and shut up. Anders… there's a vein right here. Concentrate for me."

His sister and Anders stood close to one of the twisting veins, their foreheads almost touching. Carver moved closer to Varric as Anders reached out one hand to lay it on the vein, looking down to see the dwarf's brown eyes strained with pain. He clutched the crossbow to him with one hand like the lover he professed her to be.

"Shh Baby," Varric said. "Blondie'll fix us. He can fix anything."

Except himself, Carver thought, shifting from foot to foot. What a damned mess.

The two mages spent what seemed to be an eternity at the wall - doing mage-y things and talking in low voices. Anders was reluctant - even Carver could see that, and Saoirse's earnest, persuasive tone was only going so far. Finally he saw her take the other mage's hand in hers - the sternest of her stern looks firmly in place - and as the warden's features contracted in fierce determination Carver drew Celene and settled into a fighting stance.

Blue light flared, black smoke rose from Anders' form and Saoirse dropped the hand she had been holding as though it burned. Anders placed blueflecked palms on the wall and the small hairs at the base of Carver's neck stood on end as power pulsed through the rock and into the mage.

"Not going nuts and killing us all?" Varric's voice was weak and Carver shook his head.

"Seems not," Carver said. "Looks like it's your lucky day."

"You mean I get to die down here of starvation or suffocation with the rest of you?" Varric's smile was flecked with blood. "I'm so pleased."

"If you push it you might be able to manage death in a cave-in," Carver said, trying to match the dwarf's light tone, but failing. He swallowed as Anders and Sisi came back - Anders still glowing the unearthly blue that signified what Carver could only think of as his possession. He tightened his grip on Celene's hilt, but the mage gave no sign of aggression, merely knelt by the almost unconscious dwarf and began channelling magic. Carver glanced at his sister, who shrugged.

"Is healing me a just act then, Blondie?" Varric coughed out. "Or is this a waste of precious resources?"

"Be silent," Anders said, but it wasn't Anders' voice and Carver was taken back to that moment in the chantry…

You'll know what to do, son, and I'm trusting you to do it… He could almost hear his father's voice.

"You're not Anders or you'd know how unlikely I am to follow that little suggestion…" Varric was saying.

"Speaking will not aid the healing process, Varric Tethras," Anders said.

"Why are you still… like that…?" Carver blurted out. "Now that you've got your power boost from the lyrium surely uh… normal Anders would be better at…"

"I have the same skills, just as he has mine. I am, however, more powerful. Healing will be faster and more effective, just as all our spells are. Now please, cease to distract me with questions."

Power started flowing into the dwarf and Carver looked away - there was something truly unsettling about watching flesh and bone move back into place with nothing but the application of another will - no matter how many times he'd been on the receiving end of the same kind of magic.

Varric let out a pained groan as the last bit of magic flowed out of Anders and Carver winced. The blue glow surrounding the warden mage faded and Anders gasped for breath.

"Well now' Varric's voice was back to his usual strength and Carver saw the colour had come back to his cheeks. "Looks like I won't even have to get a new coat - although it'll take a bit to get the bloodstains out. Don't suppose there's a spell for that is there Blondie?"

"You'd be surprised," Anders gasped, on the edge of exhaustion, "washing duty was a common punishment in the Tower - it's amazing how creative you can get if it means getting out of scrubbing sheets."

Sisi laid her hand on Anders' shoulder, gently, propriatorially, and Carver felt himself tense even more.

"You did brilliantly, Anders," she said softly.

"Thank Justice."

"Could you do that again?" Carver asked. "Bring him out at will? He said he was more powerful than you."

Anders looked uncomfortable. "I wouldn't want to make a habit of it," he said. "If something went wrong it could be dangerous for more than just our enemies."

"Let's not then," Carver said, and Sisi glared at him as she helped Varric to his feet..

"Try to be a bit less of a tit to the man who saved Varric's life, would you brother?"

Carver grunted. "I wasn't…" but she glared at him and he sighed as they walked off. He didn't know why he bothered, really. It wasn't as if she gave a shit what he thought.