Hey, sorry about the time frame, i've been trying to get my mind back in the game perse. Graduated a few months ago and i havent gotten back into writing till now. So here's the next chapter. Let me know what you think because words are always appreciated.
Cassandra nodded as a dark form moved towards the bedrolls. She watched as the mute dwarf unrolled one and settled in for the night. It was a good idea and she got up and headed to her cot. It was one of those days that made her thank the Maker everything was right in the world… for the most part.
Jez entered the room and stood there a moment, looking at the mage. While his face was still a bit pale, she could tell he was sleeping from the way his chest rose and fell. There was a chair and she moved over to it, sitting down quietly then reaching out to curl her fingers around Rion's hand. Her other hand slide under the flaccid hand and she watched his face.
Come the morning Rion woke up gradually, his head actually clear of pain and a weight on his arm. Turning his head slightly he saw a bright swath of blonde hair and a smile curled faintly at his lips. Reaching out with his free hand, realizing she had a hold of his hand with more than her head. Fingers gently brushed strands of her hair out of her face so he could look at her better.
After a bit he sighed and then nudged the sleeping woman. "Jez, wake up."
It took a few minutes before the woman mumbled and lifted her head up, yawning. She rubbed her hands over her face and then froze up, stiffening a moment before her hands tilted away from her face so she could see him there. He gave her a lopsided grin an turned on his side, fingers gently pushing her chin up before giving her a gentle kiss.
"Rion," she murmured.
"Sorry," he said quietly. "I am sorry I worried you."
Jez shook her head slowly. "I can't put blame on you for the Terror demon. No one could have guessed it would go for you. Though… you need to stop applying your head to solid objects that don't give."
Rion laughed softly as she tilted her head slightly with a brow rising up to make a point. "Yes, my love. I will avoid solid objects meeting my head."
Jez chuckled softly and the kissed him gently. "Glad you came out for the most part unscathed."
Rion hmmed against her lips as his fingers crawled around to the back of her neck and tugged her closer, deepening the kiss. She just slipped off the chair and settled her body alongside of his, her fingers sinking into his short hair. And that is how the healer found the two, startling the two of them when she yelped in surprise and dropped her pouch.
Jez found herself on the floor blinking up at the healer who was caught between mirth and embarrassment. Rion snorted in amusement and started the chuckle at the whole thing as he shifted to rest is feet on the floor and help Jez up.
"Dear me. I am sorry I interrupted you two," she said and shook her head, trying to hide the smirk.
Rion just chuckled at the healer. "Suppose this won't be the last time we get caught." He wraped his arms securely around Jez and she hid her face against his neck.
That made the healer laughed. "No, ser. Not the first nor last time I bet." She winked at him and then picked up her pouch. "Well since you seem to be better I will leave you two. Oh you might want to get dressed and tell the rest of the louts you are ok before they interrupt you."
"Maker take me," Jez groaned. "Just what I need. Bull needling me more than he already does."
Rion lifted one brow up a moment. "Oh?" He gazed at the closed door a moment then he grinned. "Ask him about his tryst with Dorian then if you want to get him back."
"What?"? Jez lifted her head up to look in confusion at Rion.
Rion snickered. "They have been taking rolls in the hay if you want to really know."
"Just how the hell did I miss that?" Jez shook her head slowly. "Hrmp, he's got no reason to tease me. Next time he gets it back."
Rion chuckled at her and then gave her back a pat. "Let me get up and get dressed. I think." He glanced around looking for his pack and the healer stooped over and then lifted it up and offered it to him.
"Well let me go get my breakfast now." The healer smirked again then left the room, closing the door behind her.
Rion waited till Jez got up and then he stood, stretching, not realizing she was watching him. He lowered his arms down and caught the look in her eyes, his arms slowly going to his side. That sent a surge of pleasure though him and he shifted over to her, sighing softly before giving her another kiss. Reluctantly he moved past her, set his pack down and dug out a pair of pants and a tunic.
Jez felt a bit of disappointment when he just kissed her and got dressed. Sighing softly she turned to watch him, her lips turned downwards in a frown. When he started looking around she figured out what he wanted and shifted to move over to the corner, picking up his folded armor. "Here."
Rion was acutely aware that Jez was watching him and he tried to ignore it as hard as it was. Now wasn't the time as much as he wanted to. Stamping his boots on he glanced around looking for his armor. Catching Jez's movement he turned and watched as she picked up his armor and offered it to him. He rested his hand over her's and rested his forehead against hers briefly.
"When we get back to Skyhold Jez," he said softly and then set the armor on the bed. He propped one foot up on the bed as he strapped on the shin guard then did the same with the other one.
Jez watched him, her heart skipping in her chest. He just knew what exactly to say to her. "I'll keep you to that promise," she vowed and he glanced up with a grin.
"I certainly hope so," he teased.
Jez moved over and picked up the outer robe, letting the length drop and holding it open. She helped him put it on and he buckled the straps then shifted and twisted to settle the armor in place. She then stepped up to him and slipped the pack over his shoulder as he buckled the wide belt. The wrist guards were the last thing to go on and Jez turned his hand over after slipping it on his forearm and tightened the three straps.
Rion let her help him. There was just something about her doing this for him, the intimacy of it endearing him to her even more. He smiled at her. "Thank you, love."
Jez gave a slight smile and shrugged her shoulders. "Lease I can do," she said and then tugged his head down to kiss his forehead. "I guess we need to make an appearance now," she said reluctantly.
Rion nodded and then took her hand in his and exited the room, glancing around to see who was around. He caught the Silent Sister's eyes and she bobbed her head then nudged Thornton who glanced up and pulled his pipe from his mouth, saluting Rion with it before going back to his arrows.
Belinda rose up and moved over to them, grasping his arm with hers. "Next time be more careful."
Rion chuckled and nodded. "I'll try."
Belinda just smiled and stepped back. "Inquisitor," she greeted Jez and then pointed towards the fire and the people around it waiting for their breakfast.
"Thanks," Jez said and then tugged Rion over to the fire to grab their breakfast. Bull was sitting on the other side and picking his teeth as he nodded to the pair. Cassandra was was glancing towards the west, her brows furrowed, meal forgotten. Rion picked up a bowl and passed it to Jez then picked up one for himself. He ladled the gruel into her bowl then some into his.
Jez tilted her head towards Cassandra and then moved over towards the woman. Rion followed, offering Jez a wooden spoon and then settling against the wall facing the two and startling Cassandra. She blinked at him then glanced to the side at Jez.
"Inquisitor. Rion," the blonde woman spoke and then turned her attention back towards the direction she had been facing before they interrupted her.
"Whats on your mind Seeker," Rion said then spooned some of the gruel into his mouth.
Cassandra glanced at him a moment then her shoulders lowered slightly in a shrug. "A dragon. It needs to be taken care of before it wreaks havoc on the village and countryside."
Jez nodded and sighed. "I had hoped it would move on."
Rion snorted softly. "I should have said something but it was too late before things were done. You basically drown her nest and brood. Thornton saw her sleeping down there," he pointed to the now filled lake that formed when the dam was released.
"Shit," Jez muttered.
Cassandra frowned deeply a moment then grunted. "Well we will have to take care of it then. I am surprised it hasn't yet attacked."
Jez snorted. "You didn't go with us when we went to find that woman. It had already decimated south of here pretty well."
Rion turned when the dragon's distant roar of fury rippled through the air. "Never gone up against a dragon," he murmured before glancing furtively towards the two women.
Cassandra rolled her eyes slightly and Jez glared briefly at him. The turned around when a loud laugh came from behind them and Bull joined them. "Its fun," the man said and shrugged.
"As much as I rather not get you injured again we do need to take care of the dragon quickly. Cass?" Jez glanced over at the Seeker who furrowed her brows slightly.
"You, me, bull man here and Vivien. I think he makes a good point, the more there are, the quicker it will go." The blonde's eyes turned towards Rion who gave her a thoughtful look.
"Belinda, Thornton and Pala. Gives us another rogue, a Templar, and ranger. We'll need yours and Belinda's shield. Lady Vivien and I can switch between magic and sword if need be. Bull, you and Belinda can distract the dragon while we whittle away at range. I'd suggest Pala and you, Jez, hit it from behind while they keep its attention. Thornton's deadly accurate with his bow."
Cassandra nodded and then turned to Jez with a questioning look. Jez just sighed and nodded. The Seeker glanced between the two and then turned away with a faint smile. Neither of them saw it as Rion darted his eyes towards Jez then away, peering off in the distance a moment.
"I swear, you better not get hurt this time," Jez said, her voice fierce as she glared at Rion.
He held his hands up in surrender and sighed. "I will try and avoid doing so luv," he said softly and then reached out and pulled her over to him, hugging her tight a moment to reassure her.
Jez closed her eyes and gripped on to him a moment then slowly relaxed her hold. "You better," she said quietly then pulled away, briefly kissing him. "Come on, we have a dragon to slay."
Rion grinned at her words and followed her, motioning for Pala, Thornton and Belinda to follow him. The three looked at each other a moment before the dwarven woman silently followed Rion and in turn that made up the templar's and archer's minds as curiously they followed their defacto leader.
"Bull. Viv. Sera. Come on," Jez said and moved towards the table that held the maps. Both followed without question and the Orlesian mage studied Rion as he leaned over the table, looking for a map of their current location. Finding it he unrolled it and then jerked his head to Thornton.
Thornton leaned over a moment and studied the map then rested his finger and followed a road before pressing. "Here is where I saw her. I would assume she wouldn't move far."
Rion nodded and then turned the map towards Jez and the rest. "Ok, we know the dragon was here but now there's a lake there. So most likely she's right here where the cliff used to be. It's in the direction of the roaring so I am pretty certain this is correct."
Jez studied the map and nodded. "Well it is somewhat of a flat area so she will be able to see us coming unfortunately. You two mages will have to protect us if she decides to come at us from a distance."
"'Scuse me madam Inquisitor," Thornton took a step forwards. "This area has a path that's here," his finger moved over the map. "The hills somewhat come to a box canyon here," he pointed. "This area between has some high brush and old walls. Some are tumbled down and others would give a person a little cover."
"Did you happen to notice the coloring of the dragon or anything particular about it?" Cassandra asked, her brows furrowed.
"Aye Lady Seeker. Its tail was striped like a Koar Snake," Thornton answered.
Cassandra sighed. "Northern Hunter then. It tends to shock you if given a chance. Its not like a normal firebreathing dragon at least."
"So storm magic is out," Rion murmured and glanced at Vivien a moment.
"Darling, there are other magics that we can use against it and if push comes to shove we can both double as warriors. I would say keep barriers up and use blades on it," Vivien said and crossed her arms over her chest.
Rion quirked the side of his mouth a moment at the woman's officious ways. "Indeed. Can you keep barriers up?"
Vivien studded Rion a moment then gave a nod. "Any mage can do so. The best can do so and still have attention for anything else."
He nodded slightly and turned his attention away from the dark skinned mage and to his group. "Belinda, you follow Cassandra. Pala, go with the Inquisitor and Thornton, feather it from a distance. Just… don't feather any of us while you are at it," he teased the ranger who rolled his eyes with a grin.
Jez stepped up then. "Viv and Rion will do their things. Bull, you are at the front with Cass and Belinda. Sera, I won't tell you what you have to do. You're with Thornton. Let's get this over with."
The group headed down to the stables where their mounts were waiting. Rion stroked Flames' neck and Wraith whined and pawed at her muzzle. Rion reached out and scratched the Mabari's ear. The dog tilted her head and her back leg started to move as he hit a itchy spot. That got a soft chuckle from the group. He gave the dog a final pat and then checked the girth before swinging up on the Hart.
Eight riders left the fort and headed towards the dragon's grounds. At the head were two blonde women. From the distance the scouts watched as the group made its way and then from a reasonable distance they watched the fight. It started when the Qunari rushed at the beast, knocking its front right leg out from under it. The dragon tripped and went down, its head drawing dust up into the air when it hit. The horned man spun with the axe glinting in the light to nick the dragon's muzzle right above the eye, blinding it when its hot blood started to pour down into its eye.
A flash of blue showed barriers being raised on the group before fire lit up under the dragon and singed its tail. With a roar the beast got to its feet and spun towards the mage who lifted up a translucent sword. In a flash the mage moved forwards, quicker than a blink of the eye and ice trailed the form as it passed through the injured leg. The scout watching noticed how ice gathered on said leg, weakening the dragon.
From another direction a ball of ice hit the dragon's head, distracting it from breathing lightening on the Qunari. The beast turned his head and sent a ball of electricity towards that mage who suddenly was no longer there and instead was using another translucent sword to hack away at the dragon's leg. The scout noticed when the dragon flinched and then howled when one of the archers managed to hit its one good eye.
The dragon spun, its tail out and everyone near but the Qunari managed to duck under the tail. The bull man was flung away and came to rest on his back. After a minute he got up and used his axe as a crutch a moment, watching the dragon before hefting his axe up to his shoulder. Once again he rushed it, this time taking out its left front leg and sending it to the ground once more. He turned and leaped up this time, bring down the axe's blade into the neck, burrowing it deep and then pulling it out with a spray of blood.
Both mages hit it with their swords, those blades flashing gold in the light as hit after hit dug into the beast without drawing blood. And now the dragon tried to pull itself to its feet but its back legs no longer worked. While the dazzling action of the Qunari and mages happened, a pair of silent rogues appeared behind the downed dragon and stabbed into the hamstrings, cutting the tendons and parting them like ropes. That drew another roar from the dragon.
Now there where two in Templar armor hacking at the neck and head of the dragon, both using their shields when the dragon weakly raked its claws out at it. Its back legs were useless now and a gout of electricity spouted from its muzzle, hitting both warriors and the Qunari that accidently got into range. That took them all down and the mages slashed their hands down, blue barriers rising up around the three.
One of the rogues rushed towards the downed warriors and the other only hesitated a moment before following, rushing up against the first and knocking her to the side as claws barely missed the blonde rogue's head. Then the one mage shouted, lifting his arm up to the sky and then grabbing something and dragging it down. That's what it appeared to be to the scout but instead fiery rocks started to rain down on the dragon, smashing its body into the earth over and over. That distracted the dragon enough that the other mage's intent was not found till the dragon groaned its last breath with Vivien's spirit blade in its heart.
And that was the report the scout wrote and sent to the Nightingale. In reality, Bull, Belinda and Cassandra laid panting on the ground as Pala and Jez poured health potions down their throats. All three got caught in the backlash of lighting that came from the dragon. Bull was the first to recover and sat up with help from Rion when he finally came over.
"Shit, that was a real shock," the Qunari quipped before wrinkling his nose at the scent of burned hair.
An unladylike snort came from Vivien but she quickly quieted down and rolled her eyes. "You are lucky that's all you got."
Jez just sighed softly. The mage was a godsend but she just didn't know when to shut up. By the time she got Cass sitting up, Rion had Belinda standing. "Let's not do that again, yes?"
The Seeker cracked her neck and then nodded. "Yes, lets not. We are lucky none of us died. I've seen that happen before." She turned to look at the downed beast.
"Praise the Maker for that," Belinda said with a partial grimace.
Rion glanced at the beast and then back to Jez. "Guess we better get the butcher up here. That will feed people for a while. I don't think they will care if its dragon meat or not."
"The claws, teeth, bone and hide can go to the armorer. He can make better things for the troops and us," Jez said.
"And save the heart. Some potions require parts of dragons to have full potency," Vivien said with a frown given to Rion. The man was a puzzle that she had yet to figure out. He wields his magic like a second hand and that included the Knight Enchanter type of powers. She worried at her lip a moment then stopped when she realized she was doing it.
Rion gave the woman just a bare glance before he came over to Jez and rested his hand on her shoulder. "And next time someone goes down, pay attention to whats happening."
Jez looked startled a moment before a nudge from her right had her glance at the concerned Pala then back to Rion and a cold shiver went down her back. "You are right. I wasn't thinking at all." She lowered her chin to her chest and sighed.
"Well I think getting you trained better would take care of that. I'd suggest Pala but she can't talk so that would make it difficult," Rion pointed out and the dwarven woman nodded with a shrug.
Cass spoke up then. "I know that Josephine has made some offers to trainers of all skills to come to Skyhold. I believe there might be some of Jezika's training needs there." She eyed Jez then. "And I would suggest you take them up on it Inquisitor. We need you. The whole world needs you."
Jezika winced at the way Cass said that but Rion's arm giving her a hug let her know that she was not entirely alone and she could contend with him at her side. "Well we will need wagons and soldiers here to take the meat to the town and distribute it. And with the rift gone, they won't have any more undead to worry about either. Any word on the mayor's whereabouts?"
A scout stepped close. "No Inquisitor. We have some leads though. He will be in custody and waiting your judgment at Skyhold once we have him."
Jezika nodded. "Good. There's a lot he has to atone for."