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Language:
English
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Published:
2013-07-29
Words:
372
Chapters:
1/1
Kudos:
20
Bookmarks:
1
Hits:
357

Song of Valor

Summary:

Rogue "songs" are much less musical than you'd expect.

Notes:

Work Text:

"Anders…"

"I’m kind of occupied right now, your lordship…"

"I have twelve genlocks bearing down on me right now, with a side dish of hurlock. A fireball would be greatly appreciated. NOW."

"I…" Anders paused to catch his breath. "…have a straggler to deal with…" Summoning all his remaining mana reserves, he froze the ogre just as its filthy maw opened inches from his face. Crunching up his nose at the ogre’s breath, he mentally thanked the Warden for forcing him to train in weapons. He loathed it and had complained endlessly, but it allowed him now to pull out Vigilance and tap the ogre lightly on the nose, shattering it into a blizzard of ice shards.

"And now I’m out. Give us a song of valor, be a good chap."

What followed would be spoken of with horror by the companions as long as they fought the ‘spawn. Cranking out a vicious burst shot to the nearest genlocks - terrifyingly close - Nathaniel put his head back, braced himself and let out the most tuneless, gargling ululation Anders had ever heard. It was worse than that time he’d been locked up in a holding cell in Highever, and the drunk in the next cell had been wailing a tune that was half “Barbara Allen" and half “hurlock being eviscerated by a bear". For seven fucking hours.

But, it did the job - Anders could feel his mana rushing in, and he allowed the approaching spawn to get closer.. closer ("any time you feel like contributing, mage" growled Nathaniel) until, less than a man’s height away from them, he had enough to unleash an inferno directly in front of them, turning the humans’ skin pink and hot, but making the genlocks scream and flail at themselves, blackening and stumbling. Nathaniel let off a hail of arrows to take out the last holdouts, and finally, the path was clear.

Stumbling past the archer, Anders nevertheless could not resist. “Come around to my bunk tonight, your grace. I’ll see if I can make you make that noise again."

"Given your facility with weapons, I’m quite sure you can make that noise yourself."

Anders was too exhausted to work out if Nathaniel actually meant that as a double-entendre.