The voyage had cost more than Aeoryn was willing to admit to her family but it wasn't the first time she'd used her feminine assets to protect her family. According to them the templars had never found out about them in Lothering that was why they'd been able to stay for so long. But that wasn't the truth. The truth was that five years ago they had been found out by a templar, a templar who had found Aeoryn irresistible. In return for his protection she had indulged his fantasies. With the hundreds of refugees fleeing Ferelden via Gwaren, Aeoryn hadn't had enough gold to buy them all passage. But her gorgeous looks had caught the eye of a captain who had agreed to take all of her family, including Aveline, to Kirkwall for a price other than gold.
Shoved in a hold full of people the trip would have been unbearable if it wasn't for the tenderness of the Hawke sisters. Bethany's easy smile and genuine care for the youngsters touched many, she'd entertain them with fanciful stories for hours, wiped their tears, kissed their scrapes better and in doing so was a balm for the adults as well. Aeoryn held a different kind of tenderness, she was their protector and often brought down additional scraps of food and flasks of water from her time up on deck. While no one knew what it was she did up there, no one complained when she brought back food and water for them. Of course there had been whispers of her seducing the captain but that didn't match her character as the biggest thing that earned her favor with the other refugees was her fierce protection of girls who'd been singled out by the rough sailors.
Bethany noticed the red rash like mark on Aeoryn's neck one morning and pulled back the leather collar of her sister's armor, "You've got a rash." She murmured, keeping her voice a whisper just for Aeoryn's ears only, though the proximity of their mother meant she overheard as well.
Aeoryn reached up and gently fixed her collar, "It's nothing Beth, don't worry about it."
"Have you been eating properly?" Bethany asked, her concern not abating yet as she knew Aeoryn was generous with sharing her rations.
Aeoryn put her arm around Bethany and pulled her close, kissing her hair, "I have thank you mother. I'm fine I swear." She teased lightly.
Bethany sighed and let it drop.
Leandra however, knew that kind of mark. She waited until later during the night when she could speak with Aeoryn privately. "Aeoryn." She said softly.
Aeoryn sat down beside her mother wordlessly.
"Is there something you need to tell me?" Leandra asked softly.
"Like what?" Aeoryn sighed, closing her eyes and leaning back against the hull.
"Like who gave you that mark." Leandra murmured in concern.
"It's not important mother." Aeoryn whispered seriously.
Leandra didn't say anything for a long moment, "I'm not sure how I should take that, Aeoryn."
Aeoryn looked to her, "Did you really think we had enough gold to get all of us and Aveline to Kirkwall, mother?"
Leandra frowned.
"Think of me as you wish mother, but I will protect my family with everything I have. Which means sometimes doing things I don't like." She stood, not wanting to continue this discussion. Before she walked away though she looked down at her mother, "If there had been any way I could have saved Rachel I would have. But I wasn't enough. So while there are things that I can do to protect you and Bethany and Carver, I will do them." That said she turned and walked away.
Leandra didn't know what to say. Since losing Rachel she had felt somewhat disconnected from Aeoryn but she had put it down to her tiredness and the strain of travelling. Now however she was starting to wonder if it was because Aeoryn was putting up a wall between them.
Aeoryn stood up on deck leaning against the railing facing into the wind, away from the other refugees including her family. She just needed space and staring out into the darkening skies that predicated a storm coming their way seemed to clear her mind.
Captain Saunders watched her from in front of the wheel. She was unlike any woman he had ever met. Initially it had been purely about sex, which she was amazing at. He'd bedded many whores and floozies just wanting to get to another port with only the payment of their bodies. Hawke was not like that. She was intelligent, could make him smile and he'd seen her protectiveness of her family. Loyal, strong, no fear, he knew that she was a woman who could look someone in the eye and if they'd harmed her family in any way she would kill them.
"She's a looker." The first mate leered in her direction.
"Definitely beautiful." Saunders agreed, she had good sea legs as well.
"So when we get a shot with her?" the first mate shouldered the captain hopefully.
"Go ahead and try." Saunders smiled secretively.
"For real?" he was a little surprised, but very eager.
Saunders just nodded towards Hawke, wondering just how she'd kick the guys ass.
Aeoryn sighed as her moment of peacefulness was disturbed by one of the sailors.
"You looked a little lonely." He smiled down at her, leered more like it as his eyes dropped over her figure.
"I'd appreciate being left alone, it's a rare occurrence in these circumstances." Aeoryn didn't even cast him a glance.
"Well," he sidled up to her, "I can ensure you have some… private time…" he reached up to brush the hair from her shoulder.
Aeoryn grabbed his hand, spun him around against the rail and kneed him hard in the groin.
He cried out in pain, alerting the others to a commotion.
Aeoryn kicked the rope coil beside them loose and shoved the unbalanced sailor so that his left foot was inside the coil. Tying the rope to his ankle she grabbed him by the shirt and lifted him so he was looking her in the eye, "You're interrupting my private time and I don't like interruptions." She growled, then without another moment's hesitation she pushed the man overboard.
He screamed like a girl until the rope went taunt and he jerked painfully but he didn't end up splashing in the water.
Saunders burst out laughing and applauded her, "Hawke you just made my day!" he roared so that the sailors hauling their asses to give her a thumping stopped in their tracks. "What would you have done if he'd made a move on that sister of yours?" he called for all to hear, gripping the rail and leaning against it.
Aeoryn didn't yell out a response. Instead she drew her dagger and threw it hard and fast.
Saunders looked down quickly at the blade that was suddenly nestled between his fingers. His smile widened. Pulling the blade from the rail he bellowed in a loud voice, "You got that boys, keep off the Hawke's! Haul him up Jack."
Aeoryn bowed her head in acknowledgment, then returned to looking out to the brewing storm far off in the distance. There was something about it that seemed to touch her heart, that she could relate to.
Saunders tossed the blade in his hand as he walked down towards her. Joining her he looked out to the storm that had captivated her attention for the past half hour. "It's going to be a rough night." he nodded towards it.
Aeoryn didn't comment for a moment as she considered the charge she could feel drifting in the winds, "Rougher than you think. That is no ordinary storm." she responded softly.
"What makes you think that?" Saunders asked curiously.
"My brother and I fought at Ostagar. We were there when King Cailan's army was betrayed and defeated." she nodded to the storm, "What I feel from that storm is the same as the magic used by the Darkspawn necromancers. That storm is magic driven." Aeoryn warned him seriously.
The smile vanished from Saunders face, "I heard it was a massacre. At least the Wardens paid for what they did." he put his hand on her shoulder to comfort her.
Aeoryn spun from him quickly, "The Wardens? Teryn Loghain betrayed us. The beacon was lit and instead of charging his troops he abandoned us, they left us to die. I've never seen anything like those Wardens." she shook her head at him and leant against the railing, "The way they fought was incredible, they gave their lives to try and protect the king." she kicked the side of the ship in frustration, "We could have won. We could have stopped those bloody spawn at Ostagar and my sister would still be alive. I hope that bastard rots in the void when the Cousland's get him." she spat and stormed off angrily.
Saunders made a mental note to not anger Hawke. He glanced out to the storm warily and wondered just what kind of hell was going to be unleashed.
Bethany sensed her sisters anger and hurried over to her, "Air?"
"I need to meditate." Aeoryn growled, not slowing down as she headed down into the hold.
"Uh, Air, that might not be the best place..." Bethany called down the stairs knowing exactly how her sister 'meditated'. Aeoryn reappeared a few minutes later, minus her leathers. "Aeoryn are you crazy?" Bethany gasped, shocked that her sister would meditate in her under garments on board a ship of drooling sailors.
Aeoryn didn't respond. She made her way up to the rear upper deck that was meant to be refugee free. She didn't even hear the catcalls of the sailors. Closing her mind to everything except her physical and elemental surroundings she took her senses to an entirely new world.
The catcalls and leering changed to expressions of awe and amazement as the sexy goddess began to move. She danced as though she were sparring with an invisible partner with an incredible grace and power that was absolutely mesmerizing.
Bethany kept an eye on her and prayed that no one would get too close.
Captain Saunders joined the sister of Hawke and watched the woman for a few moments before speaking, "She's no ordinary woman is she." he observed.
Bethany sighed, "Maker no. I love her dearly but piss her off and it might be the last thing you do."
"Is she... an apostate?" Saunders asked cautiously.
Bethany almost laughed, "No, but our little sister Rachel was. Aeoryn learned some rather, unusual techniques to deal with templars. That," she nodded towards her, "being one of them. It's an elven battle meditation, I don't recommend entering her sphere of balance."
"She'll kick your ass?" Saunders jested though in all seriousness.
"No, she'll kill you in a heartbeat. In that state she can literally rip out your heart and she won't even know she's done it until she wakes." Bethany warned him.
"And you're sure it's not magic?" Saunders frowned, considering where they were headed that would be an extremely bad thing.
"It's not magic, Aeoryn is no mage. Trust me, if she was the world would be a very different place." Bethany smiled at the thought of it, Aeoryn would definitely set the world on fire if she was a mage for even just seeing the injustices of the holy Chantry towards her sisters and other mages set Aeoryn ablaze.
"What do you mean by that?" Saunders was keen to find out more about the woman who was starting to captivate his mind almost as much as his loins.
"Aeoryn dedicated her life to protecting us, her family, because of what the templars would do to us for harboring an apostate. So she's kept her head down and the templars away from us. If she was a mage she would not be defensive, she would go on the offense and show the world just how wrong the Chantry is about mages." Bethany looked up at Saunders, "And only the Maker himself could stop her. I mean look at her, and that's without magic." she waved her hand towards her sister.
Saunders nodded thoughtfully, she was definitely one to keep an eye on and not just for her beauty. If she wasn't so obviously loyal to her family he'd do everything he could to convince her to stay on board, a woman like her could be life changing.
Aeoryn was completely unaware of the people around her, she didn't even notice the drops as it started to rain. What did capture her attention though were flashes in the distance, in the heart of the storm. Flashes of light, the smell of burning, the face of a dark haired olive skinned woman with a gold stud in her lip and gold loops in her ears frantically yelling orders though she couldn't hear what the orders were over the roar of the storm. The images chopped and changed but revolved around the Rivaini woman who was obviously the captain but also showed great interest in protecting an old looking tome of strange script. The last image she saw was a flash of the silhouette of a very large man with horns. Then with a clash of thunder she was back on the ship, only the thunder hadn't been in her mind.
The storm was pushing the ship hard towards the cliffs of the coast and the sailors were working frantically to keep that from happening.
Aeoryn sprinted along the heaving ship to where the Captain was yelling from the wheel.
"Nice of you to join us Hawke!" Saunders yelled at her over the fury of the storm.
Aeoryn braced her right shoulder under one of the spokes of the wheel and helped the straining man hold the ship as steady as possible in the wild waves.
"You don't have a life line, you need to get below!" Saunders shook his head at her assistance.
"And if we get any closer to the cliffs I won't need one!" Aeoryn yelled back at him.
Saunders didn't waste time or strength arguing with her, her turned his attention to his crew.
Below decks Carver, Bethany, Aveline and a number of other refugees were working the pumps to bail out the ever increasing amount of water they were taking on.
"Where's Air when you bloody need her?" Carver snarled in annoyance as his burning arms continued to pump hard.
"She's with the Captain." Bethany called to him over his shoulder.
"When is she not with that asshole!" Carver was even more infuriated which made him pump faster.
"Easy!" Aveline chided him, if they worked too hard to fast they wouldn't last the storm.
Up on deck the sky was blacked out by a massive wave. Saunders was instantly concerned about Hawke who had no life line but the thought was short lived as the wave crashed across the decks.
Aeoryn cried out in pain as she was suddenly wedged under the full weight of the wheel. Bracing herself and summoning her inner strength she managed to straighten a little and relieved some of the weight from her shoulder. Looking up the Captain was nowhere to be seen and they were getting dangerously close to the cliffs. If she didn't hold the wheel they were done for. In the rigging above men were hanging by their life lines while others tried to pull their mates to safety.
In a flash of lightning the bronze statues of the Twins came into sight, very close, almost too close for the ship to make such a tight turn.
The sailors looked to the Captain who had gone strangely silent. Many hearts sank into their guts at the sight of scantily clad Hawke bracing the wheel.
"We're so screwed." one of them murmured under his breath, shaking his head in dismay.
Aeoryn took a deep breath, she'd have to slowly release the wheel so it didn't spin out of control. Preparing herself mentally and physically she began the turn.
Many signs to the Maker and Andraste were gestured and prayers uttered under breaths as the ship did indeed begin to turn, rather sharply under the gale force winds that had been trying to push them into the cliffs for the past few hours.
Aeoryn pulled the wheel up again as the bow of the ship pointed towards the first of the Twins, the ships momentum would carry it the rest of the way and she didn't want to overshoot and end up in the cliffs.
There were cries from the sailors in the rigging to brace for impact.
Aeoryn grimaced as the port side of the ship scraped the cliff but it was only briefly as the ship drew out and with the cliffs now protecting them from the storm they slowed dramatically.
Saunders pulled himself up over the railing, praising the Maker not only for his life line holding, but for Hawke who'd held the ship steady in the worst possible conditions.
Aeoryn disentangled herself from the wheel and clutched her throbbing shoulder, rubbing it firmly to try and alleviate the pain.
"You sure I can't convince you to stay Hawke? You'd make a heck of a sailor." Saunders clapped her good shoulder, taking the wheel with his other hand.
Aeoryn smiled and shook her head, "My duty is to my family. Speaking of which I'd better see how they're going below. Glad you're alright Saunders, you had me worried."
"Worried? You do care!" he called after her, grinning from ear to ear.
Aeoryn didn't respond.
Below decks Leandra threw her arms around the drenched Aeoryn, "Thank the Maker you're okay."
Aeoryn gasped and pulled away, shielding her shoulder.
"Aeoryn?" Leandra looked to her daughter in concern.
"Just knocked my shoulder it's nothing, we've made the pass into Kirkwall, we'll be there soon." Aeoryn shook her head and gave her a mother a reassuring smile.
"Right, you can put some clothes on then." Leandra gently pushed her away from the staring young men, more than a little embarrassed that Aeoryn didn't seem concerned that she was practically naked in front of so many people.
Aeoryn smiled and chuckled softly under her breath, "The salt water would have ruined my armor, you know that." she reminded her over her shoulder as she went to obey.
Leandra quietly approached Bethany, "Go see to your sister darling." she asked tenderly.
Bethany quickly followed, Aeoryn was obviously hurt, "Air, Air are you alright?" she called, catching up to her in the dimly lit corridor.
Aeoryn slowed and smiled to her little sister, "My shoulder could definitely use your touch." She answered softly.
Bethany could see now that it was not only bruising quickly but at a very strange angle, "Come on then, you've got to be freezing to." She put her arm around Aeoryn's waist and kissed her bare shoulder lightly.
Aeoryn smiled, her family was worth everything, so much more than she could ever give for them.