The Dragonborn Comes

Chapter 44 - Success and Despair

*****

Anders had procured the map. None of us was sure how, and I didn't ask too many questions. He had the map, and I knew the likes of Bartrand only thought about fortune and glory. As for the expedition itself, Bartrand took command immediately, and while I didn't particularly care, I knew one or two others had misgivings. Bethany and Brosca both whispered that I should have been in the lead. Considering the latter had been by my side during the Blight, a few others listened to what she had to say. To prevent mutiny, I insisted that, since Bartrand had put the expedition together, he had every right to lead, and I would follow him. There were still some grumbles but everyone fell into line.

Leaving Kirkwall, it took at least a day's walk before we found the entrance to the Deep Roads. It had been covered over, and it took some digging and the removing of some rather large boulders, Varric explaining that it prevented the darkspawn flooding all the time, adding that there were exists across Thedas that had been filled in by similar ways, forcing the darkspawn to only surface in particular places where they could be tracked. Smart thinking...

Camp that first night was fine as we hadn't entered the Deep Roads yet. Deep in the mountains, there was probably no-one around us for miles, but we were all well behaved. To be honest, once we hit the Deep Roads, anyone's physical needs would be put to the back of their mind. You didn't do anything in the Deep Roads except march, fight, eat, shit and sleep. I did sleep in the same tent as the Hawke sisters, both cuddling into me, but all we did was sleep.

All of us waking early the next morning, we manoeuvred our way into the opening, and once we were all through, began our walk through the Deep Roads. I found myself closer to the front now though Bartrand continued to lead. He seemed to have an idea of where we were going, and not wanting to continually question, I simply followed his lead.

Of course, nothing is ever easy, and we'd barely walked for a couple of hours before coming across a collapsed section of the tunnel. The darkspawn had no doubt dug around the collapsed section, and it was while passing through there we heard cries for help. Tracking the direction, we ended up walking down a narrow section, leaving everyone but myself, Varric and Bartrand to cover our backs, as we eventually found a dwarf trapped under rubble.

"Bodahn?" I exclaimed.

"Dragonborn?" he replied in kind, "By the Stone, am I glad to see you here!"

"You know him?" Varric asked.

"Aye, I do. He was by my side during the Blight." Getting on a knee by Bodahn, I made he was okay first. "How the hell did this happen?"

"Darkspawn ambushed us."

I looked around before asking, "Where's Sandal?"

"I don't know, Dragonborn. I don't suppose I can ask a favour..."

I remembered Sandal. He was a lovely young man. Talented like few I'd met. I won't mention his problems because they didn't matter. I clasped Bodahn on the shoulder. "I'll go find him. Varric, help Bodahn, will you?"

"We'll have him out soon, Ragnar."

To be honest, I didn't have to go far to find him, having taken Hawke, Bethany and Merrill as back up. We found Sandal alone, surrounded by plenty of dead darkspawn. He looked at me and smiled as I simply asked, "Are you okay, Sandal?"

"Enchantment?"

I couldn't help but laugh, gently grabbing his shoulder. "Not this time, Sandal. Good to see you alive though."

"Enchantment!"

We led Sandal back to where we'd found Bodahn, and to say he was pleased was an understatement. He obviously cared a great deal for the boy, despite him not being a blood relation, and he shook my hand for so long, I was ready to ask him to let my hand go. "You're a good man, Dragonborn. Tell everyone I meet your story."

"Any exaggerations?"

"Well, maybe one or two, simply make the story to sound better, you understand."

"Are you okay to get out of here?" Hawke asked.

"We'll head back. I assume you found a new entrance?" Most of us nodded. "Then we'll head in the direction of the light and make our way back to Kirkwall." He pressed flesh with me again, and recognised Brosca too. "Good luck with whatever you're up to, Dragonborn."

Once we left them behind, we ended up finding a passage that looked somewhat familiar, Varric stating we were on the Deep Roads proper, with plenty of fresh air, and warmth provided by the rivers of lava that flowed to either side. In addition to that was the evidence of darkspawn corruption. Some places were almost clear of it. In others, it was so thick, I had the mages try and burn it away. It didn't always work, so we made sure to march through those areas quicker.

We ran into our first darkspawn within an hour or so after leaving Bodahn behind. It had been a while since I'd fought darkspawn, but I wasn't going to fuck away, stepping in front of everyone and using my Thu'um. With the number of mages in our team, they didn't stand a chance, barely having an opportunity to wet my blade with their blood. But this was simply the first contact, perhaps a scouting party. Considering we had a couple of Wardens in our group, no doubt the darkspawn sensed them as much as they sensed them, though it wasn't a perfect science.

Once we met one group of darkspawn, that would be our lives going forward. I didn't mind fighting the bastards, and nor did Brosca, having fought them by my side for months. I'll admit to being distracted occasionally as we fought them, and I felt sad as I suddenly realised that, while we'd had fun at times... I promised myself something then and there.

That first day was all about entering the Deep Roads and travelling as far as possible. Without sunlight, we simply marched and fought until we were too tired to continue, making camp wherever we could, as long as the position was defensible. We agreed to take shifts regarding watch, and I took first watch with Brosca. She sensed no darkspawn, so we took a seat a few metres away from the camp. Sitting next to me, I wrapped an arm around her waist.

"I'm so sorry, Natia."

She looked at me, confusion her face. "Whatever for, Ragnar?"

"I've ignored you."

That made her laugh. "No you haven't, Ragnar. You're just so caught up in all your new pussy, you just forget that I'm as happy as ever and you fuck me as much as always."

"Really?"

"Ragnar, trust me on this. It would take... I don't know, to be honest. Trust me, I'm as happy today as I have ever been. I still thank the Stone every day you're here."

"I just feel like... I don't want anyone to feel I no longer care."

She started to laugh. "Ragnar, I think you're just using this an excuse to fuck me." She paused before adding, turning to me, grabbing the back of my head to drag me down for a kiss. "Trust me on this one, Ragnar. The only time I will ever not be down for your cock being inside me is when I'm dead." I couldn't help roar with laughter at her blunt language, but I hugged her tightly towards me. "I love you, dumbass. Never stopped loving you. Never will."

"And I still love you, Natia."

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear," she whispered. So we held each other until we were relieved, then we headed hand in hand back to my tent. I didn't particularly want to be intimate in the Deep Roads, and Natia understood, so she was happy to simply sleep by my side.

The next day sucked. Not because we hadn't made love, or that anyone else was jealous. No, I was reminded of our previous journey into the Deep Roads, as was Brosca. The webs that started to form sent a shudder even up my spine. Bartrand continued to lead and I demanded he stop once the webs started to thicken.

"Cast a spell up there," I asked.

Anders sent a light spell above our heads, and the spiders scattered straight away. All eyes looked at me, as they knew I had experience. I knew Brosca was already terrified, as she was immediately by my side. Holding her around the waist, I simply ordered, "Burn it all!"

Fire erupted around us as the masses of webs were burned. And that's when the spiders descended. Keeping Brosca behind me, I used my Thu'um so many times, I'm sure everyone else feared me by the end. I hated spiders, have no problem admitting that. And when the giant one made its presence known, I was beyond fucking around. I used around half a dozen different Shouts to kill it, with some help from my mage colleagues. By the time we were done, the smell alone was enough to make some of my companions' gag. I simply asked for more light, making sure we were safe. Most of the webs were gone, but we were surrounded by so many spider bodies, I was sure they were mostly dead, and those still alive wouldn't be stupid enough to attack us.

We continued forward until I suggested we stop, Bartrand agreeing. That night, Natia joined me again, as did Bethany and Hawke. And I had to give into temptation with Natia. The Hawke sisters simply watched as Natia and I made love. She didn't want the hard stuff for once. Her heart was full of love for me that night, believing I'd fought the spiders to keep her safe. To be honest, I did remember our time during the Blight, and Natia remembered to stay close to me.

"Consider me impressed," Bethany stated as Natia slowly rode my cock.

"You love him?" Hawke asked, simply curious.

"More than anything," Natia moaned quietly.

"Well, we definitely understand," Hawke stated.

"She's my dwarven goddess," I said as Natia leaned forward, needing to kiss me. I didn't want to make love in the Deep Roads, but after what happened earlier, I wasn't surprised Natia wanted me. I'd always told her I would protect her with my life. I told all my girls that. She happily slept beside me that night, as I'd made her cum at least twice, while I'd left one load inside her. That's all she wanted before falling asleep.

We moved on, following the Deep Roads where we could, but after centuries of exposure to taint, some of the tunnels had collapsed, and we needed to follow tunnels where the darkspawn had dug new paths. That's when I took the lead, Brosca near me, as she could sense them, and I had learned their tactics. That's where they would be waiting for us.

I had no problem using my Thu'um against the darkspawn, hearing one or two jokes about leaving some for everyone else. The jokes were in jest, but I wanted to make sure everyone survived, and they all knew that. I had a gift most simply couldn't comprehend, and once they saw it at its most powerful, even Bartrand was happy enough to let me lead, he simply issuing instructions on where to turn.

Despite there not being a Blight, they seemed to know we were coming, as the deeper we descended, the bigger monsters they sent. When they sent a few ogres, I did wonder what the hell we were walking into. I couldn't handle them alone, so the mages stepped forward and helped fuck them up too. I always enjoyed killing a few ogres as they were big ugly bastards, completely stupid, usually led by other darkspawn, generally some sort of genlock that seemed to control them.

Fighting darkspawn was our lives over the next couple of days. It was a real reminder of the Blight for Brosca and I, and we ended up leading the way, Anders stepping forward, as he had fought them during his time in Amaranthine.

However, I wasn't the only one to notice the taint of the Deep Roads slowly started to disappear as we continued to march forward. I figured that could only be good news, though wondered what it meant. What I didn't expect was to meet a fucking dragon so far underground. Not just a dragon, but small dragons as well. We'd been travelling for so long now; I was in no mood to fuck around. The dragon was just that, a dragon, so I used my Thu'um to my advantage, making sure it stayed on the ground so I could just kill the bloody thing. It wasn't easy, killing a dragon never is, but when it comes to fighting them, it's kill or be killed. I made sure I or any of my companions didn't end up dead.

"Maker's breath, what next?" Bethany wondered.

"Right, we make camp here. I don't know about you, but I'm knackered after that. I'm just about done having to deal with dragons," I stated.

"Um, right, we should make camp," Bartrand stated. By now, no-one really listened to him. I was effectively in charge but I wasn't going to make an issue of it.

I was joined by Brosca and the sisters again that night. What surprised me was that the sisters wanted to see me with Brosca again. "Why?" she asked.

"Natia, we can see how much you love him. He's been distracted recently, but we realise the love and affection he has for you."

"What about Merrill?" Brosca wondered. I couldn't help but laugh as she added, "Seriously, Ragnar. That is a young elf who is head over heels for you."

So Merrill was invited to our tent. I would like to say nothing happened that night but that would be nothing but a lie. The girls were happy to let Merrill have me first. I'm not sure why, but when she lay underneath me, it was... It was beautiful. Her fingers dug into my back, her legs wrapped around me, our lips barely parting. We made love, that much was clear. Natia cried watching it, so did the sisters. I didn't think about them. I only thought about Merrill, and when she said she loved me, I echoed those words back. You probably think I didn't mean it, but I did. I loved many women in my life, and I definitely loved her.

"That was beautiful," Bethany whispered. I was still laying above Merrill, still inside her. Merrill was... I'd never seen her so happy. We may have been in the Deep Roads, miles underground, but I'd been her first, and nothing would change that.

After spending a few days travelling, without much intimacy, that night was something else. Merrill was delighted I'd made love to her, and Brosca was next. I made her cry when I made her cum for the third time with my mouth. I simply held her after that, and she loved it as always. My girls in the tent hugged her as I kept eating her out until she was almost ready to pass out.

"Maker's breath, Ragnar. No wonder they all love you, including our mother!" Hawke exclaimed.

I smiled, then dragged her towards me, burying my face in her pussy, earning an immediate groan. I made her cum twice, then focused on her sister. Natia did ask about me, but I insisted it was fine, I just wanted all my girls to cum that night. I made Bethany cum as many times as her sister, all four girls lying back as I could only sit back on my knees, looking over the four of them. Ever felt like a god?

"I love you," Merrill whispered.

"I can't even describe," Brosca stated, "Forever, Ragnar."

"You have my heart," Hawke stated.

"Mine too," Bethany whispered.

I lay in between them. It was hard for them all to snuggle into me, but they had no problem cuddling into others. I think they were happy just being near me.

Waking the next morning, all four had remained in my tent. No-one was stupid enough to say anything by the campfire, and we moved out after breakfast. The deeper we travelled, the less darkspawn corruption we found, until I figured there was none at all, and I simply wondered how deep we were, and more importantly, where we were.

"This is positively primeval," Varric stated, "No dwarf has set foot in this section for millennia."

I figured leaving the darkspawn behind was a good thing so we kept moving forward, heading back would have been a dumb idea. The Deep Roads continued on until it practically came to an end, though that was only because we entered a thaig, but this was like no thaig we'd discovered during our expedition during the Blight, primarily because there was no darkspawn corruption. The thaig seemed to be completely untainted. I'm not sure about everyone else but I felt uncomfortable about that.

After camping for the night, we explored what was an ancient thaig. Varric admitted it was unlike anything he'd seen before. The rest of our group spread out, looking for any sort of treasure promised, but we found little. It was rather barren and had obviously been abandoned for centuries. That's when I noticed Bartrand had disappeared.

After a quick search, we found him near the entrance, holding something in his hands. "Red lyrium?" Bethany asked.

"Bartrand, what are you doing?" Varric shouted.

He barely seemed to hear the question. Instead, he looked our way, walked through the entrance, then shut the thick stone doors in our faces. He made progress, as I heard at least two more slam shut within seconds. "Fuck!" I shouted.

"Will you gift work?" Varric wondered.

I tried straight away, but the dwarves built things to last, and the doors wouldn't budge, even using the full force of the my Thu''um. It was powerful but it had its limits, though I'd long learned it worked differently on Thedas than it had in my own world.

"What was that in his hands?" Brosca wondered.

"No idea but I intend to find out," Varric muttered.

"Once you're done, expect me to finish the job."

Varric looked me up and down. "Remind me not to get in the way when you're pissed off, Ragnar."

We had to fight our way out of the thaig as monsters had been lying in wait for gods only know how long. I remembered fighting golems, as they were proper bastards to try and beat. It took my gift and powerful magic to kill them. When we had to fight and kill shades, which I knew were the result of demonic magic, I did wonder what the hell we had stumbled into.

"Don't care about that. I just have questions for my brother," Varric stated. He wasn't the only one, I assured him.

Having to make camp in the thaig was a pain in the arse. Not because we were attacked constantly, but none of was comfortable, and sleep was hard to find. I eventually got up early in the morning and simply patrolled the perimeter.

We continued to march and eventually ran into more monsters and demonic creatures. One group that caught my attention was something called 'profane'. It took Varric to describe what they were but it wasn't a surprise that the mages in our group knew what they were as well. To be honest, the profanes were a complete bitch to take down compared to anything else. We ran into desire demons, which were bloody easy compared to some of the other creatures we ran into.

I wasn't surprised when we eventually ran into a demon that wanted to make a deal. I was beyond dealing with demons and no-one complained when I told the demon to firstly fuck off before I unleased my Thu'um. With mage assistance, the demon didn't stand a chance, stepping over its body as we moved on.

All that seemed to do was piss off whatever magical construct that controlled the domain we were entering. The mages sensed powerful magic, but by this stage, I didn't give a shit. I was going to kill whatever stood in our way, return to the surface, take a lung full of air, then hope the gods would burn the darkspawn, the Deep Roads, and anything in between. I was beyond pissed off by now.

We eventually reached what I figured was in the end, but that's when a wraith made of nothing but rock made its presence known. This one tried to make a deal as well, but after telling it to fuck off again, our entire group ending up fighting it plus numerous other magical creatures it seemed to summon. As usual, the demon, wraith, or whatever you wanted to call it, was overconfident, and in the end, we managed to kill it quite easily, or so it seemed.

Moving forward, as we couldn't turn back, we ended up in a cavernous room, and that's where we found the treasure promised by Bartrand. I have no problem admitting we filled our pockets, while the two dwarves we'd hired as our helpers probably found their back weighed down more than ever. There was more gold than I'd ever seen, and the sort of jewels that would earn someone more gold in one minute than they'd earn in five lifetimes.