Lullaby
By Jackie Almasy
Part 1
Prayer
Hawke didn't know how long the battle had been raging around her. The templar reinforcement seemed unending at times. More and more men poured through the gates, filtering into the tiny room.
The warrior felt her body ache with fatigue. She didn't know how much longer she could push herself. Orsino's abomination had been put down no more than minutes ago though the battle seemed like an eternity ago. She had watched in horror as the fallen forms of three mages merged with Orsino's own body, twisting and reshaping into a demon from the darkest nightmares.
She caught the full brunt of a templar hunter's long sword swing with her shield. Hawke could feel the metal of her sword actually creek and groan under the power of the soldier before her. Suddenly shoving herself foreword with all her might, Hawke grunted at the trembling her body was exerting. Thrusting her sword through the man's weaker points of his armor, Hawke heard his cry of sheer pain in combination with the tearing of his flesh and innards.
Yanking her sword out, she began backing up towards her friends and comrades. Her normally calm demeanor was gone, her battle senses heightened as she breathed heavily. Hawke felt her breath become like ice in her lungs. Coming up fast behind Sebastian were two templars. With his back to them and focused on firing his arrows as fast and effectively as he could.
"Sebastian!"
Her voice betrayed her position as she began charging foreword as fast as she could. Grabbing her shield in one arm, the warrior drew her arm back. Gritting her teeth, Hawke screamed out as she threw her shield towards one of the templars as effectively as she could. Turning his head at the last second, one of the templars did not move away in time before catching the shield in the back of the head.
Falling to the ground, the nearby templar barely drew his sword in time to catch Hawke coming down on him at full strength. Bringing her free hand to his armored head in a balled fist, the woman warrior pushed her sword through his neck. Watching the severed head fall from his decapitated body, Hawke quickly acted by thrusting her weapon through the other stunned templar's stomach.
Twisting it while still in his body, the woman panted heavily as she pulled her weapon out. Sebastian's bright blue eyes caught hers. Blood was spattered over his cheeks as his tanned complexion was covered in a sheen of sweat. Both warriors momentarily smirked, nodding in assurance to one another.
The light smile of love spreading over his face caught her momentarily off guard in the chaos around them. It had only been a few months since their quiet confessions of love in the Chantry, right before the Maker himself it had seemed.
Gripping her weapon in hand with a renewed zest, Marian Hawke turned in time to see a templar hunter standing across the large courtyard with his bow drawn. Releasing his first arrow, Hawke at first did not recognize the arrow lodged deep in her chest. Bringing her gaze slowly down to her chest, the pain shooting through her veins became numbed in the erratic heartbeat pounding in her ears.
A second arrow entered her breast no more than five inches from the first arrow. Her breath failed to leave her body without a horrible rattle that seemed to come from the very core of her soul. Feeling her strength suddenly leave her, Hawke's grip on her sword loosened before allowing the heavy long sword to fall to the floor with a clatter.
The sounds of battle around her seemed to drown out around her. Silence was approaching her and fast.
"Is this it?"
Looking up with a cloudy gaze, the woman weakly grasped one of the arrows lodged in her chest. Her armor was now slick with her blood pouring from the wounds, her armored gloves barely managing to hold onto the weapon. Hearing the sound of metal boots walking towards her, her pained green eyes looked up to the templar hunter quickly approaching her.
She watched in a hazy awareness as he was suddenly struck down by Isabela's skilled moves. Falling back towards the cold hard stone, Hawke felt her hair strands fall over her face.
"Andraste, please. Not now. I know I have killed but please, just a little more time."
Hawke felt her eyes water through the haze of pain, her breaths becoming dangerously shallow and wet. Her body jerked unconsciously at her lungs struggling for air, spitting up red blood onto her lips and chin.
"Maker Above, m-my chest! I-It hurts…"
Her emerald gaze turned just enough to see Sebastian's form turn to look in her direction. The look of horror and dread spreading across his face made her heart hurt. His words were lost on her as the pain throbbing through her body drowned out almost every sound.
Her eyelids suddenly started feeling heavy and despite Hawke's best effort could not keep them from beginning to lower.
The last image she remembered was Sebastian running towards her fallen form with an arm extended.
"Sebastian, I am sorry…"
Hawke felt her chest rise and fall one more time before the darkness claimed her. Whether it was death or simple blood loss, she did not know.
"I-I love you…"
"HAWKE!"
Part 1 of 2 is done!
Oh ho ho! I do love cliff hangers! What about you all?
Musical Inspiration: "I Surrender" by Celine Dion.
Till next time,
Jackie Almasy