Chapter 11

The Message

It was dark. Too dark for her to make out anything. For all her damn elven blood, she had not inherited their keen eyesight. For all she knew, she could be stumbling right into a trap. Of course, there was no reason for it. But it made Jezebel paranoid nonetheless. She slowly crept along the wooden floorboards, her bare feet making only the slightest of sound as they padded against the surface. She felt her body stiffen as Keegan's snoring muffled, but regained control once she heard a light cough and the snoring continue. Her nightgown was brushing up against her skin as she made her way over to the door. Silently, she slipped her boots and cloak on and crept through the door.

A sigh escaped her lips as Jezebel closed the door behind her. Keegan would not allow her to investigate the scene at the docks earlier which made her grow suspicious. It might have been a sign of overprotection, as he was afraid of another explosion or someone waiting to kill her at the docks in case she wasn't on board. But she could not resist the curiosity of seeing the wreck for herself. She stealthily made her way down the hallway and the stairs only to have herself frozen in place as a heavily accented woman cleared her throat. Jezebel spun to face her, clutching her chest in utmost horror. The woman raised a thin eyebrow at her and regarded her choice of evening wear questionably. "Might I get you something, messere?"

Jezebel waved off the woman. "No no, I was just going for a stroll."

The woman tapped her chin, a small smirk creasing her lips. "I see. In the middle of the night, with no lantern and creeping down my hallway like a cat?"

"W-well, you see I-" Jezebel fumbled her hands together, "I was just trying to not wake my Husband, you see. He doesn't like me going for walks without him. He thinks I'm going to run away with some merchant." She let out a force but nervous chuckle. "He's a bit jealous and this is the only time I get to be by myself." She looked down at her boots nervously, praying to the Maker her act was working. Keegan had come up with the idea that they should pose as husband and wife on their honey moon, as to not create suspicion as to why two well-armed foreigners have appeared in Rialto and their ship had just exploded. They bickered like an old married couple as it was, so it wasn't exactly hard to pass off.

The woman's smile remained as she gestured towards the door, bowing slightly. "Well, then, you better be on your way, messere." Jezebel thanked her and quickly turned towards the entrance, strutting across the plush carpets. Before she was able to open the door, the woman gave her pause once more. "They pulled the ship out of the water. It's a few hundred yards east of the docks." Jezebel turned to question the woman, but she was already walking up the stairs, saying something else that made Jezebel's mind race as the woman waved her hand. "Jaiden sends his regards."

Jezebel huffed and open the door, the cool night breeze hit her face, soothing the redness caused by frustration. Damn that woman.

"Well, I'm sure the Arishok will be just delighted to know that he was right… and wrong." Varric picked up some of his more usable bolts that had merely bounced off the mercenaries armor.

Merrill was coughing uncontrollably, still trying to wave off the affects of the poison gas. She still managed to struggle out a side comment to Hawke, who was helping Aveline search the bodies. "These poor people. What did these elves do to deserve this?"

"I don't know. But I'm wondering why my guard didn't inform me that he was shutting down this section." Aveline wandered over to the stairs, looking up at the makeshift barrier before snorting in disgust.

"What a waste." Fenris shook his head as he looked down at the corpse of a deranged female elf that had inhaled too much of the gas. He did not regard the elves in the Alienage with any form of respect. In fact, he was completely repulsed by them. Wallowing in their filth, satisfied with their rolls in life and blaming the shems whenever something went wrong. That was their entire life. Never once did he see an elf try to make something of himself. Never once did he see one do as he pleased or go against what was expected of him. It disgusted him to the point where he was actually reflecting on Sebastian's words about him being an "idol" of sorts to elves. Me, an idol? Someone drank too much of the Chantry wine. He made a small "humph" and turned away from the body and back to his comrades.

Hawke walked over to Merrill, and hung his arm lightly around her, squeezing gently. "Come on, let's get moving. We're going to have to tell the Arishok what happened here." He pulled Merrill away from the sight and had the others follow in his lead.

Aveline grunted as she fell behind in his step. "Yes. I have a few questions for him, myself."

Varric shook his head and chuckled. "If you weren't obligated to behave yourself, Aveline, I think you would have more than just 'words' with the Arishok."

Aveline snickered at the sly comment, knowing how true it was.

They passed the guard, who congratulated them on their success and saluted his Captain. Aveline turned a sharp eye to him, warning him of a long lecture that was to come. He gulped and stepped back as they passed.

They made their way through Lowtown and to the docks without much trouble. The gangs were still having trouble reforming after their previous encounter with Hawke and his comrades a few years back. Very few dared to challenge the man without a heavy amount of people to swoop down upon them. Though when Hawke unleashed a firestorm, the men jumped into their own peril. Therefore making the term 'swooping is bad' a common one outside of Ferelden. The group stopped at the compound, encountering two Qunari guards. Hawke stepped up to one of them saying that he had news of who stole the powder. The guard turned him away, claiming that the Arishok could deal with the business once he was finished with his rest in the morning. They parted ways, concluding that this was as far as they were going to get that night, and headed home. All except for Fenris, who made his way to the abandoned house on the edge of Hightown.

The night wasn't over for Jezebel. It was just beginning. The cool crisp air of the night was a drastic change of the heat that overcame Antiva during the day. She hugged her arms against herself as she slipped in and out of cover, careful to avoid the hanging lanterns on the light posts that lined the road. She didn't know if anyone was watching her, so she moved like they were. She would disappear in the shadows only to reappear on the other side of the road. Again and again she did this, wary of her heavy breathing. Finally, after nearly twenty minutes, her feet hit the soft sand of the beach that was just off of the docking area.

The lighthouse brought a little more clarity to the beach. Within a few minutes after roaming her eyes along the stretch, she spotted a large vessel, half dragged onto the beach. Jezebel made her way over to it, trying to steady her footing on the uneven surface. It was a lot bigger than she expected it to be. She knew half of it was concealed by the water when they were riding on it, but she never expected it to be as massive as it was. It would put the legends of Asha'bellanar to shame. She could hear the creaking of the wood as the sea salt dried, already beginning it's decay. Strands of seaweed still hung from the holes in the side, most removed by an obsessive Captain. The entire stern of the ship was… missing. Jezebel crept inside the hole, the stench of wet powder overwhelming her senses. The only other time she had encountered that stench was when she went to Hawke's home and an explosion occurred, caused by Sandal. It turns out he was playing with some raw lyrium and powder he had found in the Deep Roads. Half of his room had gone up, only to be put out by a quick ice spell cast by Hawke.

Jezebel snapped out of the memory when she saw a faint glow out of the corner of her eye. As she grew closer, her runes pulsated, wanting her to reach out to the light. She resisted her own limbs as she saw what it was. Lyrium. Her runes began to bulge out of her shins, even her palms were having a difficult time controlling themselves. She screamed out in pain as they tried to flea from her body, to go towards the source of power. The power behind the explosion. She crouched down, trying to control herself, and hugged her knees tightly. "Wha- what is this?" She had never experienced such a raw desire for Lyrium before, except on one occasion. When she had kissed Fenris. Jezebel struggled as she felt her body being pulled to the source, her nails scraping against the tattered boards of the ship. Her world spun as she grew closer, until she finally went blank. Darkness consumed her as she passed out on the broken ship, her body still pulling her forward.

She felt herself being awakened as a bright light shined through her lids. Muffled voices were barely penetrating her haze. Jezebel felt drugged, her limbs heavy and her eyelids the weight of two ogres. Slowly, the voices began to have more clarity. The one speaking now had a thick Orlesian accent. Another, with an Antivan accent was arguing with him. The Orlesian was barking something at the Antivan. "We can't bring her back! You know this. Look what happened when she was left unchecked!"

The Antivan grumbled. "But if we don't, they will suspect something is wrong. We can't let the plan crumble now. We're so close! All of it will be wasted if we don't wait."

Orlesian scoffed, his footsteps growing closer to Jezebel's body. Her heart pounded as she readied herself for action. "Fine, we will do it your way. Help me with her body, then." Orlesian reached down and grabbed onto her arm, but was thrown down as he did so. The small girl had sprung up and grabbed onto the man's wrist. She forced her weight down upon him, making them both fall to the floor. Her hand was wrapped around his throat, as her eyes attempted to adjust to her surroundings since they were still blurry from earlier. Antivan ran over to her and tried to tug her off the Orlesian. It was no use, her grip was too tight.

Orlesian coughed and struggled to release her grip. "Jezebel! It's me! Let go." Jezebel squinted her eyes, her vision clearing up some as she saw the scruffy light-brown haired mage staring wide-eyed up at her. His hair had been cut short, except for a few strays in his face. The lines around his eyes and on his forehead had deepened slightly with age.

Jezebel recoiled, releasing her grip and scrambling until her back hit the cot she was previously lying on. "L-Lionel?" Her eyes darted around the room, looking for the man that had tried to pull her off of her old friend. They landed on a pepper-gray haired old man. His lines on his face were much more deeper and numerous than Lionel's. The sword strapped to his side was decorated in runes, both for appearance and power. He wore a dark blue tunic and black pants, hooked together with a large utility belt that carried several poisons and potions. His faded black boots thudded against the floor as he walked towards her. "Jaiden?" Jezebel looked at the man questionably.

Jaiden nodded and held out a gloved hand to the woman. She took it with her own gloved hand and was pulled to her feet. Jaiden then extended his hand to Lionel, and did the same for him. "We didn't expect for you to wake for some time. Actually, we were hoping that you wouldn't wake up at all until you were back at the Inn."

Jezebel blinked several time, looking in between the two men. "Why? What's going on? What happened on the ship? And why are you," she directed the question to Lionel while pointing at Jaiden, "with him?"

Lionel fidgeted nervously. "Well, um…" he looked over at Jaiden for guidance. The old man shrugged and shook his head. "We were just taking a stroll?"

Jezebel tapped her foot in annoyance. It was too clear that these two were hiding something. Something that apparently involved her. But if Lionel was here, why wasn't Keegan as well? Wouldn't they have woken him up to tell him what happened? And why did they not want to wake her up in the first place? Jezebel's head swam with too many questions. Luckily, Jaiden was going to answer them before she spoke.

"I know you have a lot of questions, Jezebel." Jezebel scoffed, causing Jaiden to roll his eyes. "But we can only tell you a few-"

"But if we tell her the whole thing she might be able to help." Lionel was silently pleading with Jaiden.

Jaiden shook his head. "No, I'm afraid that she can't. Not yet."

"Well, she, would love to know just what is going on. Like, why was there raw lyrium on the ship? And why was I unable to resist it?"

The old man sighed and motioned for her to sit down on the cot. Lionel grabbed two chairs that were at the corner of the small shack they were in. The two men sat down, Lionel rubbing his hands together nervously.

Jaiden cleared his throat, making sure the attention was on him. "As you may have noticed, someone is trying to kill you. We know who it is. That ship was a set up. It was obviously no coincidence that it blew up."

Jezebel snorted. "Obviously, it didn't work because here I am."

Lionel raised an eyebrow and sighed. "It wasn't supposed to kill you. Just delay you from going to Tevinter."

"But why would they want me to be delayed? What could they hope to gain from that?"

"That is something we can't tell you. Not because we don't know, but because we will be afraid of what will happen if you knew," Jaiden said as he glared slightly at the healer.

"So, I'm just supposed to play a sheep?" The two men nodded slowly. She huffed angrily. "Well, that's just splendid! Thanks for the input guys, you are so helpful."

"Jezebel, we know it's hard for you not to know, but just trust us. Alright," Lionel said, pleading with his friend.

Jezebel chewed on her lip nervously. "Alright. But you still didn't explain the whole lyrium thing."

"Runes are made with lyrium. So, naturally, you are drawn to it. It's a promise of more power. Unfortunately, too much will do exactly what it does to mages."

Jezebel felt a lump form in her throat as she thought back to Fenris. "It will… kill me?"

"As far as we know of, yes. No one has ever tried consuming it in vast amounts. I stay away from unrefined lyrium as much as I can. It's not exactly something I'm willing to test." Jaiden eyed Jezebel curiously, as her face went white with horror. "Is there something troubling you about this?"

She shook her head, her voice growing small and her eyes avoiding Jaiden's. "I, um, no. I'll stay away from lyrium."

Lionel clapped his hands together and stood up. "Good. You better be on your way. The sun will be rising in a few hours."

Jaiden stood up with Jezebel, trying to put together pieces of a puzzle that he knew she wasn't giving up. "One more thing, Jezebel."

She glanced up at him as he led her to the door, "yes?"

"The reason Lionel is working with me is because I know he can be trusted. I have many of your old clan with me as well. All the ones I know that will do anything to protect you."

"I thank you for that, but what are you implying?"

Lionel put on a grim expression as he opened the door for her. "Don't tell Keegan that you saw us."

She looked at the two men as she was halfway through the door. "Why wouldn't I? Shouldn't he already know?"

"No, he thinks we're dead," Jaiden said as he ushered her out the door, allowing Lionel to close it behind her. Jezebel was left standing on an old rickety porch, the sounds of the waves crashing against the rocks filling her ears, and the words of an old man and a mage left to swim in her head.

Fenris was annoyed. No. More than annoyed. He was infuriated. There was no reason for all this run around. They had gone to the Arishok that morning to tell him about what happened the previous night and all they got was one angry Qunari. Even Hawke, who was on mostly good terms with the leader, was annoyed by how he acted. But he had to tell this to the Viscount. Now, Fenris, Anders and Merrill all waited in the main common room for Aveline and Hawke to finish their business.

He glanced over to the pack of his so called friends and shook his head at the sight. They were all relaxing on the upholstered seating area near the door while he crossed his arms and leaned against the pillar. They were lightly chatting about something, laughing once in a while and glancing over at him. He narrowed his eyes at them whenever they did this. Fenris didn't know what they were talking about, but he certainly hoped it wasn't about him. Especially the way they laughed about the matter. Merrill seemed more uneasy than usual, saying that she would like to get the day over with to go back home and work on something. They all knew what it was. It was the Eluvian. A forbidden mirror that Fenris wanted to smash as soon as he heard about it. As soon as he heard that she made a pact with a demon for it. In yet, Hawke still showed her affection, despite all the evil she had proved to be capable of. It sickened him. Maybe the group was getting to him, finally. He had never stayed in one place for too long and so the company of others made him a little more uneasy than it should have. Or maybe he was just taking his frustrations out on them, he didn't know. He turned his attention to the mage and Guard Captain that were descending down the stairs, bickering about whatever it was that the Viscount had told them.

"You should leave this up to the guards. We can handle this, Hawke. Just go home and get some rest."

Hawke shook his head at the woman as they made their way to the group. "No. The Arishok is angry as it is. We have to deal with this delicately. If Seamus had indeed joined the Qun, than bringing guards there isn't going to look like we're just paying him a visit. There is going to be a lot of resistance if that happens." He turned to Aveline and touched her shoulder. "Just let me deal with it, Aveline. I know what has to be done. I'm sure with a bit of charming talk from a certain mage, he will come to his senses."

Aveline smiled grimly. "Not everyone listens to you."

"The ones that don't come around sooner or later," he said while giving her his most charming grin.

The Guard-Captain shrugged his hand off and stared at him, determined. "Alright, but I'm coming with you just in case something goes wrong."

"Wouldn't have it any other way, Guard Captain Aveline."

She rolled his eyes at him and opened the doors, allowing the fading sunlight to spill into the Keep.

Hawke looked over at the group when he reached the door. "Fenris, I need you to come with me. Merrill, you can go back home. I know there are things you would rather return to than playing a messenger. Anders can tag along if he wishes."

"Wouldn't leave you high and dry, Hawke," Anders said while making his way over to the other mage. Merrill ran over and hugged Hawke tightly, thanking him, before she bolted out the door and past Aveline.

The grouped arrived at the compound to find that Seamus had already left. He received a note from his father, asking him to visit at the Chantry. Hawke was scowling, as was Aveline, when they left.

"Tell me, how is it that we were sent by the Viscount to retrieve his son when he already sent a letter asking to speak with him," Hawke asked, the agitation in his voice clear.

"What else is new? It's a set up. One that I'm hoping you will investigate," Anders said as they made their way through Lowtown.

Fenris sneered at the healer. "Of course that's what we're going to do. Do you really think that Hawke would let this matter go?"

"Pray to whoever you want to that this turns out all right." Aveline silenced them both as she strutted past them, her armor shining in the moonlight.

They arrived at the Chantry to a dead Seamus. His body was cold and lifeless as Hawke tried to grab onto him. Hawke and the others looked down below them to find that they were surrounded. There were angry followers of Sister Petrice, or Mother Petrice as it were now, down below them. They claimed that Seamus went against the Maker and they would perish along with him for following the same path. A battle erupted between the two groups. Blood stained the statue of Andraste. In mid slaughter, Fenris looked up at the statue and felt Her eyes bearing down upon him, judging him. He knew he shouldn't care what a statue thought, but he couldn't help thinking what they were doing was wrong. Spilling blood in the house of the Maker. Spilling the blood of His followers. Her eyes penetrated him, and he thought he saw an expression of pain form on the statue. Fenris gritted his teeth and closed his eyes as he swung his blade in front of him, slaying the last of the followers. He opened his eyes as he heard a gasp of pain. The woman fell to her knees and looked up at him. She dropped her blade, and for a moment, Fenris watched her. Her face changed to a more oval one. Her long red hair shortened to an auburn crop on her head and her ears became slightly pointed. His eyes widened to the imposter Fox as she mouthed the words "why?" to him before falling face down to the floor. Fenris stepped forward and bent down to the woman. He reached out to her, hesitating before turning the woman over. As he did so, Hawke was speaking to Grand Cleric Elthina, words that Fenris could not understand in that moment. Not until he knew… and then it happened. The woman's face stared at him, her eyes wide in horror. He wasn't sure if they were looking at him or looking at the statue. It didn't matter anymore. His mind was playing tricks on him for he saw the woman was not who he believed. She had turned back into a pathetic fool peasant and he stood back up stiffly, walking over to the group as Elthina turned towads the stairs.

"Grand Cleric? Grand Cleric," Petrice was screaming at the old woman as she made her assent up the stairs. She looked back towards the door as a Qunari warrior loaded an arrow and struck her dead in the chest. Her eyes widened in shock as she slumped downward. The group took a step back as the Qunari fired another arrow, killing the Mother. "We protect our own," the Qunari stated before turning and exiting the Chantry.

"Someone send for the Viscount," the Grand Cleric said before continuing her way up the stairs.

Hawke turned to the group and nodded to Aveline. She took off as fast as she could to alert the guard, who would in turn, alert the Viscount.

An hour passed. Hawke had tried his best to persuade the Viscount that the matter of the Qunari wasn't going to get any better now. The Viscount dismissed him, and now the group stood on the steps on the Chantry.

"That didn't look good for anyone," Anders said sighing heavily.

"Yes, well, we will meet in the morning to discuss our options." Hawke looked distantly at the night sky, wishing things had gone a different road, wishing that he had been there sooner.

"I need to talk to you, Hawke, preferably before tomorrow. I'll meet you at your home in a few hours." Aveline jolted down the stairs as Hawke called back to her.

"Can't this wait?"

Aveline paused mid-stair and did not turn back to him. "The way things are going? Not a chance."

Hawke cast his eyes down as Aveline continued her descent, followed by Anders. Fenris and Hawke stood on the steps alone for a few moments.

"Ever feel like you are playing a game you can't win?"

Fenris looked at Hawke, a bit surprised by his words. He blinked a few times before responding. "All the time."

"What do you do about it?"

"You want to know the truth?"

"Yes."

"I run. And never look back."

Hawke scoffed and shook his head. "I don't believe I can do that. I'm in too deep to just walk away now."

"Why would you stay somewhere just because you feel like people need you? They are grown, they can take care of themselves. If you feel like there is no place left here for you, then take your leave. Kirkwall will wallow quite well in it's own chaos without you here."

"Yes, I think it would," Hawke chuckled. "One question, Fenris."

"Hmm?"

"Why do you stay?"

Fenris looked out to the desolate city. His eyes roamed to the oppressive statues. Proof of their past slave heritage. His eyes flicked to Hawke's and locked to them. "What alternative do I have? You said yourself that you need me, Hawke. Has this changed?"

"I saw you in the Chantry, Fenris." Hawke stepped forward, pressing his feet down on the steps as he slowly made his decent. His back was facing the elf now. "It's true, I need you. But you know you don't want to be here." He glided down the steps with ease, leaving an angry elf behind him.

"And just where would you expect me to go?" Fenris clenched his fists, getting confused by the mixed message.

"I'll see you at the Hanged Man tomorrow." Hawke gave a short wave before reaching the bottom of the stairs and exiting the Gallows.

Fenris palmed the foreign dagger on his belt, his head drooping in exhaustion. What do I do, Fox? As always, the dagger gave him no answer, and he found himself walking down the stairs of the Chantry, praying silently to the Maker to give him guidance.

I'm a little proud of this chapter

No idea why, but I am.

Anyway, please review and blah blah blah nug testicles.