"Fools rush in where angels fear to tread." (Alexander Pope)
"Fenris," Hawke said as he entered the room. She was seated on the edge of the bed, looking pensive. He paused in stripping off his gauntlets.
"Yes, Hawke?" He kept his voice even, but inside he felt a twinge of doubt and fear. Fenris didn't like where this was going.
She looked up at him, silhouetted against the fireplace, her blue eyes flickering with the reflection of the flames. "Do you ever wonder if you might die?"
"Of course. It is the nature of our profession," he said, continuing to remove his armor. "Does it bother you?"
"No," Hawke said. "Yes. I don't know. Lately, with all – this," she said, gesturing vaguely. "I'm afraid that each fight will be our last. That I'll die and you won't know – how I feel," she finished lamely. She smiled. "I guess I'm not very good at this."
Fenris finished stripping off the last of his armor and went to her. "Do not let it worry you, Marian," he said, and she shivered at the rare use of her given name. "I – love you." He stumbled over the words, unfamiliar as they were, stark and vulnerable in the otherwise silent room. Regardless, it felt right to say them.
"I love you, Fenris," Hawke said hesitantly, and then his lips were upon hers, tender yet insistent, and the night was spent lost in a haze of desires fulfilled.
"Fenris?"
The elf looked up from the desk, pausing in his reading. Hawke had poked her head into the library. "I've just had a message from Knight-Captain Cullen. Apparently Meredith and Orsino are having another lover's spat." She sighed. "At least life as the Champion of Kirkwall is never dull. Come on; we've got to go."
Fenris reluctantly folded down the corner of the page to mark his place and began strapping on his armor. Hawke, who had already pulled on her leathers and twin daggers, was waiting in the foyer.
"If we hurry, we can get Aveline and Varric before we head to the Gallows," she said quickly as they emerged from her estate, blinking in the sunlight.
Fenris smirked. "No need," he said, gesturing at the stairs to the Viscount's Keep. Aveline, in full Guard-Captain platemail, was taking the steps two at a time, an orange and silver blur. She was accompanied by her husband, Donnic, and a small contingent of guards.
"Way ahead of you, Hawke," Aveline said, coming to a halt in front of her friend. "I've just heard about Meredith and Orsino. I have all hands on deck right now. If this blows up in our faces they have orders to get Kirkwall's citizens to safety."
"Good. To the Gallows, then."
They made a short detour to the Hanged Man to pick up Varric.
"I thought something like this might happen," he said grimly as he shouldered Bianca and followed them to the Gallows.
Whatever they had expected, it was not what met their eyes. The courtyard was empty save for Knight-Captain Cullen, who ran to meet them.
"Thank the Maker you're here, Champion," he said, his eyes wide. "Meredith and Orsino have started fighting again. The First Enchanter stormed off to bring the matter before the Grand Cleric, but Meredith went after him." Cullen shook his head. "You've got to talk some sense into them, Hawke, or there will be blood. Meredith has gone mad!"
"Oh, now you believe me?" Hawke said furiously. Without waiting for a response, she and her companions ran back the way they had come.
Hawke could hear the raised voices of the First Enchanter and the Knight-Commander as soon as she set foot in Hightown. It was not difficult to find them. They were standing about ten feet apart at the base of Viscount's Way, screaming at each other. So involved were they in their argument, they did not immediately notice the arrival of the Champion and her companions. After several minutes went by, however, Hawke was beginning to get irritated.
"This is ridiculous," she muttered, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Aveline?"
"Yes, Hawke?"
"If this gets any more out of hand, send Varric to the Chantry. I'm going to go tell Mommy that her children are fighting again." With that, Hawke swept away.
The Chantry was quiet and still, a welcome change from the commotion outside. Hawke's leather armor creaked as she made her way through the sanctuary. Several Chantry sisters passed by with quick platitudes. Though Hawke was not particularly devout – growing up in a family of apostates made Chantry visits nearly impossible – she still enjoyed the peaceful calm that always washed over her when she was here. It was a place where everything made sense and fit together exactly as the Maker intended. Hawke envied that kind of certainty sometimes.
"Your Grace," Hawke said, bowing her head and holding her right fist over her heart as a gesture of solidarity.
"Champion," Elthina said. "What a welcome surprise. Have you come to pray?"
Hawke smiled slightly. "I'm afraid not, Grand Cleric. Meredith and Orsino are having another row outside the Viscount's Keep at the moment, and I was hoping you could accompany me to reason with them."
Elthina nodded her assent. They started down the stairs. "I had hoped they could work out their differences," Elthina said, almost sadly. "Their positions impel them to become a team, but they fight the ties that bind them at every turn."
"Your Grace, if I may speak freely."
"Of course, Champion."
"In the past, neither of us has taken sides. You, in particular, were very adamant about letting the Knight-Commander and the First Enchanter sort out their differences on their own. But now the time has come for us to choose. Before we join them, I need to know where your loyalty lies." Hawke stopped at the door to the Chantry, subtly blocking the exit with her body.
Elthina smiled. "My loyalty lies with the Maker, child. In all things, I seek His wisdom and guidance."
Hawke opened her mouth to respond, but never got a chance. With a rumble, a red beam of magic burst through the floor of the Chantry. Sisters screamed, chaos erupting in the once-peaceful sanctuary. The statue of Andraste was bathed in red light, as though she had been drenched in blood. Hawke and Elthina stared in shock for an agonizing moment.
"We've got to run, your Grace!" Hawke shouted over the thunder in her ears. She grabbed the Grand Cleric's sleeve, yanked open the door, and made it only a few steps before the building exploded.
Templars and mages had started to gather in the square, as had a few nobles and several of Hawke's other companions. Aveline, Varric and Fenris moved towards the rest.
"What's going on?" Merrill asked keenly.
"Exactly what it looks like," Aveline said grimly. "Looks like we're going to have to break this up." Aveline strode forward. "Ahem!"
Meredith and Orsino looked over, startled into silence. "What's going on here?"
"This is none of your concern, Guard-Captain," Meredith snapped.
"I am here on behalf of the Champion," Aveline said coolly.
"The people need to see what their Knight-Commander had become, what she has done!" Orsino said.
"I have done my duty to the citizens of Kirkwall, mage! I have protected them time and again. I have protected you and your mages from yourselves and your curse!"
"What is she talking about?" Aveline said to Orsino.
"This is but the latest of accusations against us," Orsino said. "She sees blood magic in everything. My people cannot even sneeze without being accused of corruption!" He shook his head, his lips drawn back in a sneer. "This is getting us nowhere. Grand Cleric Elthina will put an end to this madness!" He turned, but Knight-Commander Meredith followed, yanking him back by the shoulder of his robes.
"You will not bring her Grace into this!"
"The Grand Cleric cannot help you!" A new voice called out. Aveline, Meredith, and Orsino turned to face the speaker in surprise. It was Anders.
"Explain yourself, mage!" Meredith spat, her blue eyes narrowing.
"I will not stand idly by while you treat innocent mages like criminals, while those who would lead us bow to their templar jailers!"
"How dare you –!" Orsino said hotly, but Anders interrupted.
"The Circle has failed us. The time has come to act!" Anders said. His eyes flashed blue, the spirit within exulting in the culmination of their plan.
Fenris narrowed his eyes. Something was very wrong here.
"There can be no half-measures. There can be no turning back."
"Anders, what have you done?" Aveline demanded.
"There can be no turning back," Anders repeated, more softly.
The ground began to rumble under their feet. Fenris drew his sword, and by the whisper of steel echoing throughout the square, he was not the only one. A great burst of red light lit up the sky to their right, the spire of the Chantry illuminated in the waning sunlight. As those assembled watched in trepidation, the two towers of the Chantry exploded. Broken stone began to whirl around the scarlet beam, the vortex of rubble gaining momentum until the building exploded with a tremendous crash, blanketing the city in dust and debris. The horrified silence that fell was heavy upon them all.
Fenris felt as if the bottom had dropped out of his stomach. Hawke had gone to warn Grand Cleric Elthina – Hawke had been inside the Chantry – Hawke – Fenris' sword fell from his grasp and clattered onto the cobblestones.
"What have you done?" whispered Orsino into the utterly still twilight.
"I have removed the chance of compromise because there is no compromise," Anders said. "There is no one to stand in the way."
In a flash of lyrium blue, Fenris had closed the gap and was upon Anders. The mage lay prone on the ground. Fenris' fingers closed on his chest, over his heart.
"You have murdered, in cold blood, the one person who could make this right," Fenris snarled. "She believed in you, like she believed in all of us, and now, because of you, she is gone."
"Wh-What are you talking about?" Anders said, confused.
"Hawke was in the Chantry," Fenris said, and as he said it his heart squeezed uncomfortably as though he had reached through his own chest and took hold of it.
The onlookers assembled gasped. Could it be – their Champion was dead?
"That's right," Fenris said, his green eyes glinting dangerously.
"No," whispered Anders. This had not been part of the plan. Nameless Chantry sisters, the Grand Cleric – they were to blame for the stranglehold that had been placed on mages for centuries. Not Hawke. She had even helped him, unknowingly helped gather the ingredients for the explosion, taking Anders' word without a thought to the contrary. She had championed the cause of mages with her actions, despite her diplomatic nature that never openly took sides. Anders closed his eyes.
"The Grand Cleric and the Champion of Kirkwall, slain by magic . . ." said Meredith slowly, gazing into the sky where the Chantry had stood moments before. Her crystal blue eyes narrowed, and she whirled on Orsino. "As Knight-Commander of Kirkwall, I hereby invoke the Right of Annulment! Every mage in the Circle is to be executed immediately!"
"You can't!" Orsino protested. "The Circle didn't have anything to do with this!"
Templars advanced upon the mages, circling like jackals. "You will not harm them!" Orsino cried, throwing up a shield of magic between them. Over his shoulder, he said, "Run! Get to the Gallows!" The mages did as they were told, Orsino bringing up the rear, never turning his back upon the templars.
"As the Champion's companions, I expect you to support me in this," Meredith said, addressing the group that had gathered around Anders and Fenris. "I will be in the Gallows, rousing my men. You will join me there once you deal with this . . . murderer in your midst." She glowered at Anders, then swept away.
"The time had come to act," Anders said. "I know that I deserve to die because of it. My name will be the rallying cry of the mages' revolution. I did what I thought was necessary."
"And I must do what is necessary." Fenris plunged his hand into Anders' chest and closed his fingers over the mage's frantically beating heart, ripping it through his chest and tossing it away. Anders let out a small 'oh', then the light in his brown eyes, still wide with surprise, went dull. Fenris stood up, ignoring the expressions of his companions and swept away.
"We're done here."