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The Alienage in Denerim is not what you'd call a nice place to live, but it's calm, and it has some nice scenery. Enormous tree, shanty-huts, that sort of thing. And the people are always interesting.
One of those interesting people is standing shadily on a street corner and looking at nearby elves. One of his hands is in his pocket. He's unusually dark for someone in Ferelden. Unusually human, too, though he's hunched over so that it's not immediately obvious. And he's muttering to himself, which is a sure way to make people not want to look at someone.
The things he's muttering to himself aren't the ravings of a madman, though. "Not her, I'm sure she'd just rupture... couldn't get him... promising. Excuse me, young man?" he quavers in the voice of an old beggar. "Spare a silver?"
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"Well, I'm going to have to stop in at the Wonders to get more crystals of that horrible drink Jahenna likes so she doesn't bisect me for calling her back into service. After that, we can get on the road."
After acquiring horrible drink crystals, they set out onto the road. Duncan is impressed with how quickly Tev learns to sword, and is perplexed but also pleased by how well he can murderously shield.
A few days in, they are stopped by a Band of Ruffians. Duncan rolls his eyes.
"You're sure you want to rob us."
"Yep! We outnumber you twenty to one, even a Warden can't kill twenty men at once."
"How willing are you to bet your life on that?"
"Just hand over your gold, old man!"
Duncan sighs. "Tev, what do you think?"
A few days in, they are stopped by a Band of Ruffians. Duncan rolls his eyes.
"You're sure you want to rob us."
"Yep! We outnumber you twenty to one, even a Warden can't kill twenty men at once."
"How willing are you to bet your life on that?"
"Just hand over your gold, old man!"
Duncan sighs. "Tev, what do you think?"
moreperfect
"I'm pretty sure you could take 'em even without my help," says Tev.
"I was thinking the other way around." He turns back to the bandit leader. "You aren't, say, driven to this life by the indignities of society?"
"You could say that. You could also say that I enjoy taking people's money."
Duncan claps his hands. "There we go! Tev, I'm declaring this a training exercise. Feel free to subdue them nonlethally or more permanently, doesn't matter to me. I'll be sitting over here."
He sets himself down on a nearby rock, with the air of a man who could definitely kill any man who approaches him. The bandits turn to Tev.
"You could say that. You could also say that I enjoy taking people's money."
Duncan claps his hands. "There we go! Tev, I'm declaring this a training exercise. Feel free to subdue them nonlethally or more permanently, doesn't matter to me. I'll be sitting over here."
He sets himself down on a nearby rock, with the air of a man who could definitely kill any man who approaches him. The bandits turn to Tev.
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"All right," says Tev. He reaches up over his back and retrieves his shield. He doesn't even touch the greatsword. "Any of you fine fellows want to reconsider your life of crime?"
There is a general shaking of heads. And knives.
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"Fine."
He hurls the shield at the bandit leader. It bounces off the man's chest, knocking him to the ground, and blurs back to Tev's hand.
"How about now?"
He hurls the shield at the bandit leader. It bounces off the man's chest, knocking him to the ground, and blurs back to Tev's hand.
"How about now?"
"Charge!" wheezes the bandits' leader.
The bandits charge.
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Tev throws his shield again. It knocks down three charging bandits on his way back to his hand, and while it's out he draws his greatsword.
There are more bandits! They do not seem particularly intimidated by Tev's ability to knock them down.
moreperfect
Yeah, he was afraid of that.
How about his ability to cut them in half? Is that more intimidating? Because he can do that. He has a greatsword.
How about his ability to cut them in half? Is that more intimidating? Because he can do that. He has a greatsword.
More intimidating, but not sufficiently so to stop the charge. There really are a lot of them, and the more of them there are the more effective their knives will be. His attention can only be in so many places at once. And Grey Wardens are known to have a great deal of coin.
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Fine.
On the next throw, he lets the shield be sharp.
It goes straight through the bandit on the far left, bounces off a rock - Tev cuts someone else in half with his greatsword - the shield takes off somebody's head and bounces off a tree - Tev kicks someone in the chest and knocks him to the ground - the shield comes through somebody's head and lands neatly on Tev's arm, where he immediately uses it to block a couple of knife-wielding bandits while he swings the greatsword at two more. No one has actually managed to touch him yet.
On the next throw, he lets the shield be sharp.
It goes straight through the bandit on the far left, bounces off a rock - Tev cuts someone else in half with his greatsword - the shield takes off somebody's head and bounces off a tree - Tev kicks someone in the chest and knocks him to the ground - the shield comes through somebody's head and lands neatly on Tev's arm, where he immediately uses it to block a couple of knife-wielding bandits while he swings the greatsword at two more. No one has actually managed to touch him yet.
Some of the bandits are scared now. They would like to be elsewhere.
The bandits' leader, however, has gotten up off the ground and appears to be more angry than anything else. He roars and charges Tev at top speed, brandishing a truly absurd battleaxe.
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Tev blocks the axe with his shield, and is slightly surprised to feel the strength of the blow. He spins away and cuts down three bandits, two with the sword and one with the shield's edge, to clear his path a little so they don't distract him while he's dealing with the leader.
The leader is still roaring. Also, still swinging. He is good at both of those things.
Several of the bandits decide to be elsewhere, given that the terrifying shield man can stand up to a full-force swing from the leader. The rest keep a definite distance, except for one who decides to try to stab him in the back.
Several of the bandits decide to be elsewhere, given that the terrifying shield man can stand up to a full-force swing from the leader. The rest keep a definite distance, except for one who decides to try to stab him in the back.
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Tev is too busy blocking another axe-blow to deal with the man who stabs him in the back. But being stabbed in the back doesn't seem to impair him much. It's like stabbing a very sturdy tree.
The man who has just stabbed him in the back is very alarmed by this! He joins the rapidly increasing number of bandits who are running away.
The leader is ever so slightly off balance while keying up for a massive swing intended to take Tev's head off.
The leader is ever so slightly off balance while keying up for a massive swing intended to take Tev's head off.
moreperfect
Then perhaps Tev can ruin the bandit leader's day by shield-bashing him in the face.
That does seem fairly likely to ruin his day! The bandit leader's face looks displeased by this development, for a value of "displeased" that includes "broken".
The bandit leader is pretty badly staggered. Berserk rage only goes so far.
The bandit leader is pretty badly staggered. Berserk rage only goes so far.
moreperfect
Great. Okay. Tev is done fucking around. He cuts the man's head off.
Is anyone else going to fuck with him?
Is anyone else going to fuck with him?
The bandits seem disinclined to fuck with him! Duncan is applauding politely. "Excellent work! Well done, very well done."