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“Right,” you say. “The darkspawn. And the hat. We can’t just leave the hat.”

“Well, then,” says Tarquin, sounding satisfied. And, before anyone can say anything else, he vanishes over the edge of the pit, plunging downward into the nest of darkspawn. His sword is swinging long before he reaches the bottom, sending slices of darkspawn flying.

There’s nothing you and Ashur can do but follow him.

Your sword moves in a wide arc, taking out the darkspawn in twos and threes, but you never lose sight of your goal. You’re getting slowly closer and closer to Ashur’s hat, but… that also means you’re getting closer and closer to the big, ugly darkspawn ogre that has claimed it. And it’s no surprise; the beast is easily half again as tall and twice as wide as most ogres.

“Hat looks—better on him—than on you,” Tarquin gasps in between swings. Ashur, who is busy with his own fighting, just rolls his eyes.

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