So I love this chapter! It's so angsty and dark and mysterious, or to me at least. I'm sure you readers know whats coming up in the next few chapters, it's going to be fun to write this entire major part of the game that was never really experienced except towards the end. So writing how it started and what happens before the Wardens arrive is gonna be interesting. As always, thanks to everyone whom has faved and alerted this story, I can't thank you guys enough. Continue to review, my three reviewers I have, lol. And I will probably post a A Warden's Rose chapter before the next chapter, but it'll be soon!
XIV. IN THE SHADOWS
Three heavy thuds echoed loudly into her bedchamber, startling Astrid from a long needed slumber. She wanted nothing more than to ignore the knock at her door, to turn into her pillow, close her eyes, and relive that sweet dream she was having; but the three knocks were followed by another round of urgent poundings. Sighing, the mage slid herself from bed and dragged her feet across the stone floor to answer the door; yawning once her hand reached the iron set handle. Her eyes were barely open and still blurry from heavily sleeping when she swung open the door just a fraction to the company of three templars, all armed and fully garnished in their armor. As her vision cleared, the young mage was struggling to register what was suddenly happening. One of the three templars reached through the doorway to haul her into the hallway, holding her roughly by the arm; his gauntlets digging into her bare forearm. Another templar came to her other side, grabbing her as well, and then they began to pull Astrid along.
She didn't know whether to struggle or give in, sleep still fogging her judgement of the event before her. It was only as a familiar voice pierced the ringing silence did she begin to waken, acknowledging that these templars were apprehending her. "I said gently!" his voice carried over the rattle of armor and suddenly the firm grip on her arms ceased, replaced by a much softer touch. Astrid craned her head to see a stern Cullen, both angry and worried, but keeping his head high for the other templars. She wanted nothing more than to call his name, to have him look at her as he use to: admiring and happy; but she had tore that right out of him. However, she needed to tell him something, but as she opened her mouth to speak they were now storming down the staircase.
Through the apprentice quarters they moved swiftly and down onto the main floor of the Circle tower, where Cullen's gentle hold on her was nervously squeezing tighter. Astrid continued to watch him under her lashes, trying to decipher the worry in those cold blue eyes. She felt he was seconds away from finally looking at her, but a clutter of motion and others drew her focus away. The young mage was now in the presence of several templars, just as armored as the others, and with the Knight-Commander standing authoritatively before them. His gaze was hard and strictly upon her as she stumbled into his company, feeling the reluctant release of her arm from Cullen. Astrid saw them all watching her through their helmets and she suddenly wished she had grabbed her robe.
"Astrid Amell, you are under the suspicion of aiding a mage in escaping the tower," the Knight-Commander's statement made her entire body fall still, "therefore I must sentence you to solitary confinement until the matter has been settled." Again templars were on her and this time she struggled, although it was no use against the templars ability to dispel her magic. Astrid stole a glance at Cullen, who was now watching painfully as she was being yanked towards the basement doorway; she'd never been so mortified in her entire life. When the floundering had done her no good, the young mage gave in to the tug and pull of her templar escorts, unable to look at Cullen again as she disappeared into the basement.
By luck, she had been delivered into one of the more tidy cells, although the smell was still there. The other cells were all empty, the only other person in the basement with her being a templar guard. Astrid tucked herself into a corner of the dungeon, finally understanding how Anders had felt those long nights. She scowled, that damn mage, Astrid knew this had to be his doing; he actually escaped. A part of her felt abandoned and rejected by his break out, and the other part was just happy he was gone, but she didn't know why. The bloody mage had made her happy, made her feel loved and wanted; and when they had finally slept together, it wasn't enough. Astrid knew she'd be hurt by his leaving her, but it was for the better. Something had always felt misplaced, or gone. What?, she didn't know, and it was something she began to ponder for hours in her cell.
As time ticked by, Astrid was wondering if the sun was up yet or if the birds were singing outside her window; but then again, maybe it wasn't morning yet, just a few hours after she'd been forced into the basement. She'd casually fallen in and out of sleep, unable to keep her eyes shut with a draft throughout the chamber and the uncomfortable eyes of the templar watching her. Suddenly self-conscious, she tried to stretch her tunic to cover more skin, but to no avail. She wondered when they would come for her, to interrogate her about that blasted Anders; what would she say? Astrid decided she would tell the truth no matter what. The First Enchanter and Knight-Commander knew her enough to believe her, or at least she hoped so. If they didn't, she may be made Tranquil or sent to Aeonar, both were very unpleasant ideas.
She began to shake off the fear when the footsteps of someone approaching came within ear shot. Astrid turned her head against the wall, shocked to see a dressed down Cullen relieving the creepy templar from his guard. The templar hastily made his way back to the surface, while her former lover dragged a stool to sit in front of her cold cell. He looked at her just as pained as before, although this time Cullen wasn't avoiding her returning gaze. "So your lover escaped," the templar declared in a frigid manner, careless to the hurt that crossed her face. Astrid turned away, guilty. "Did you give him a passionate good bye-"
"Cullen!" Astrid cried, now realizing the templar had seen far more than a bit of foreplay between her and the mage. She felt dirty knowing he saw her like that, erotic and vocal. "He was a mistake," she replied, as if trying to justify her night with Anders. Cullen smirked, which only brought more surprise to the mage.
"A mistake huh?" he muttered, "like we were?" A tremble ran through her body and a tear finally escaped her emotional wall. Astrid crawled to her feet, shaking her head and then turning her back to Cullen. She had to say something.
"You were never a mistake Cullen," she sobbed, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. "That night in the chapel, I've never forgotten it," Astrid closed her eyes to reminisce the moment. "Your gentle passionate kisses, how you carefully ran your fingers along my skin, and how you took me so amorously and forbiddingly on the chapel floor," a shaky sigh left her dry lips, "I remember every second, and have never regretted any moment spent with you Cullen."
Unexpectedly, Astrid felt cold hands rub the length of her arms and spinning her around tenderly when they had reached her hips. She hadn't heard him unlock the padlock on the cell door and relieve himself of his shirt, but the mage could care less. He pressed his forehead against hers, rising his hands to cup the curves of her face. The mage gaped at the dark eyes of Cullen, his steamy breath just barely inches from her parched mouth. She moved into him, pressing the contours of her figure into the sculpture of his body, and that was it. Cullen dipped lower to kiss her carnally on the lips, parting her lips voluntarily with his thumb and snaking his tongue along hers; which she noticed was quite long. Astrid clung to him, gripping at the muscles of his back to be closer, feeling his icy hands leave her face and back at her hips.
She moaned loudly into his mouth, quivering as his gentle touch began to push up the hem of her night shirt. One hand moved underneath her tunic, groping aggressively at her sensitive breast and gently pinching her nipple. Astrid pulled away from the kiss and gasped, exposing the flesh of her neck to his wondering mouth as he licked the length of her nape. Cullen nipped at her collar bone and sucked on her shoulder, now trying to completely remove the fabric keeping him from her swelling bosom. Her knees became weak and Astrid fell into the templar, he lowered them onto the dirt covered ground and her into his lap. Astrid pulled his mouth back into hers, becoming cold as he removed her brassiere and worked at the binding of her underthings.
When she was completely naked and now entirely impatient, she pleaded for him to take her, biting softly on his lower lip. Cullen followed her demand, using one hand to undo the drawstrings of his breeches while the other held her up by the waist. He didn't even given her a moment to look when the templar forced her onto him, inhaling sharply as he did. Astrid bit his shoulder, trying to wait for the bewildered pain to pass. She found herself remembering the pain the first time, the guilty apologizes Cullen made, one after the other. It made her wonder why it hurt now, after many times of doing it before; was it that ache for him she had been ignoring recently? The mage dug her nails along his back and Cullen held her securely by the derrière before moving.
Astrid rolled her head back and arched herself against him, gasping when the angle was perfect. She stared at the ceiling with rolling eyes, noticing the sudden blackness of the cell as Cullen advanced into her. The mage couldn't help but feel being watched and that something was amiss amongst all this sexual bliss. A hot grunt vibrated from the templar's throat as he pushed faster, Astrid wrapped her arms around him, staring now over the broadness of his shoulder. She couldn't see a thing; it was as if they had disappeared into nothingness. Suddenly she felt Cullen's nails dig viciously into her thighs and his mouth chomp down on her lip; Astrid winced and tightly shut her eyes in pain. "You're a...disgusting...mage."
There was nothing there. Astrid's eyes snapped open and she was alone, clothed, and utterly alone. Her entire body was covered in gooseflesh and there was a cold sweat about her brow. The terrified mage glanced nervously about her cell, unable to control her shaking, or look away from that reoccurring dark corner in the chamber. Astrid uneasily licked her lip, catching her breath when she tasted iron. A trembling hand reached slowly for her mouth, feeling the sting of the wound on her bottom lip, and pulling away to see vibrant red blood. Almost in a panic, Astrid pulled herself to her feet and to the furthest point away from that haunting corner. She wanted to call to the guard, realizing it was the same templar as before, although he wasn't looking as hungrily at her as he had been. Fear planted a nightmare into her thoughts as she desperately tried to fathom what had just happened.
"-release her now!" A high voice demanded from the doorway into the chamber where all the cells were built, causing the bored templar guard to get to his feet. There was another disgruntled comment, followed by another voice, but Astrid was far to confused to hear the voices clearly. Then, to her relief, Wynne appeared; moving quickly past the fumbling guard and to the mage's cell. Astrid distraughtly moved to the cell door, peering suspiciously over her shoulder. "Now would be a good time! We don't have all day!" The young mage couldn't begin to explain how happy she was to hear the old mage's motherly reprimanding. The templar guard was rushing to turn the key in the lock, the senior mage tapping her foot and staring knives and daggers at the templar that had followed her into the basement. There was a distinct click of the latch and Astrid felt the cell door pry open from her weight leaning against it.
Wynne reached for her, placing a warm arm around the frightened mage's shoulders and taking immediate notice to Astrid's bloody lip. "Did the templars touch you child?" the old mage was using her own sleeve to wipe away the already dried blood, and the young mage could feel the numbness of it being healed. Astrid shook her head and felt dizzy, wobbling into Wynne and being helped by the templar guard. "Thank you young man, if you would help me bring her up from the basement please," she asked kindly, to which no man could refuse her grandmotherly ways. He nervously held her by the waist, and draped a cold arm about his armored shoulders. "Do you know how she inquired her injury Ser?" Wynne went on to ask as they passed through the doorway, held open by the other templar.
The guard vigorously shook his head, his helmet slightly turning back and fourth as he did so, "She was thrashing about in her sleep ol' miss, she must've hit herself on somethin'." Astrid looked up at Wynne from the corner of her eyes, noticing the clear doubt across her aged features. They took her into a long corridor, where the familiar bulk of doors just ahead were slowly being opened by two templars standing guard. Emerging from the basement was rather miserable, the young mage had to squint her eyes from the sunlight pouring through the darkness and she was met with the familiar crowd of templars; however, this time the First Enchanter was at the Knight-Commander's side.
"Not now Greagoir, this girl needs some rest," Wynne snapped as the head templar opened his mouth to speak. Irving nodded at the senior mage's request and moved aside for them to pass, Astrid still trying to adjust to the blunt brightness of the room. The templar helping her moved away, but Astrid was still weak and nearly fell flat on her face. "You there, help me," the young mage gazed up at the templar she addressed, coincidentally being Cullen. He didn't hesitate as he stepped towards her and nor did he struggle when he swept her into his arms, completely relieving Wynne from holding her up.
Astrid grasped him, holding his scorching body heat emitting from his open collar to warm her freezing arms around his neck, nuzzling her head against the plate on his shoulder. She closed her eyes and felt safe, this was the real Cullen. Her body cradled as they moved, a worried Wynne urging the templar to quicken his step. The young mage couldn't get over how warm he was compared to that version of him in her dreams and Anders, both cold to the touch. She was on the brink of tears, mourning that their atonement had been nothing but a dark fantasy that left her with a bloody lip. However, Astrid knew one thing, Anders had been a mistake and everything she wanted was now standing patiently at the opening of her bedchamber. She felt both a fool and a coward, she had tried so hard to reject the lingering sentiments of feelings after their first night together; Astrid even tried to drive him away. Why did it have to take her so long to understand? "Lie her there on the bed, I'll fetch some water," Wynne's voice woke her from tormenting epiphany in her head, and she watched over the templar's shoulder as her skirt disappeared around the corner.
Cullen carefully sat her on the bed, holding her up as she swayed, still so weak. Finally she fell back against Myrah's quilt, her red hair tucked and spilled around her, she smelt just slightly dewy from time spent in the cell. Cullen began to pull away from her and as it felt like the last time he might touch her, Astrid despairingly held him back by the wrist. He stood frozen in her grasp, still purposely avoiding her face as she stared at him through her dark long lashes. She needed him to look at her, to see that she was guilty and sorry for all she had done. "I...you...C-Cullen," her voice came out as a raspy tremble, and barely audible, but she prayed to the Maker he heard; she had never prayed so hard. But his hand slipped through her cold fingers and the templar was growing in distance away from her.
"The senior mage will be back." She watched him leave her behind, Astrid's hand still stretched out for him. Cullen was then gone, and she suddenly felt empty. The young mage curled into her bed, she had ruined everything.
Cullen was actually fleeing from Astrid, not even bothering to answer to the perplexed senior mage when he nearly knocked her back. Every step, he was escaping from what he wanted most. He couldn't bring himself to believe those last breathy words, even though her eyes were glistening with held back emotion and she held to him so tightly in such a fragile state. After her rejection and betrayal, how could he just melt back into long gentle arms? It was far too late to turn back now, no matter how much he wanted to. Cullen knew this was for the best, a mage and a templar were never meant to be. At that he stopped in the stairway, something taunting urging him to turn around, and when he didn't a icy chill ran the length of his spine. He quickly left the floor and back to where the Knight-Commander would be waiting.
Greagoir was busy arguing with the First Enchanter, whom he had never heard raise his voice before until now. After the other mage had escaped the night prior, it had become mandatory for the templars to check on all the mages once they were all back in their rooms. It was during this time that a templar had reported to the Knight-Commander that Anders, that bloody mage, had escaped. And because of the obvious relationship he had with Astrid, she immediately fell suspect to aiding his escape and possibly following after. Irving was enraged over the very idea, and while Greagoir himself had doubts, it was his templar duty to take the necessary precautions. Which was why Cullen was assigned alongside four others to find Astrid and bring her to him.
The templar went to join Godric and Mathias, as Hadley stepped in to settle the dispute between the templar and mage. Cullen's mind was boggling, but he took a keen interest in the ghastly pale complexion of Mathias, whom was trying his best to keep former. He looked on curiously until the templar noticed him, "Cullen, may I have a word?" The usually humorous but calm Mathias was struggling to stay composed. He didn't wait for the templar but went on to find a private place for them to speak. Cullen was wary of whether to follow, but the fear in Mathias' eyes were convincing enough. So after glancing back at the fuming opposites, he followed in the footsteps of his friend.
Mathias led far enough where they wouldn't be heard and promptly began pacing, to which only worried Cullen more as he neared. The templar watched, waiting for the other to start, and he did, only after he'd run a troubled hand down his stoic face. "I had a dream last night Cullen, like the others have, like Godric did," he said quickly and rather frantic. "I've never looked at a mage and desired them, they've always just been unattractive to me, but..." Cullen felt he wasn't going to like this part, "in my dream, I wanted nothing more then to splurge in animalistic intercourse with this mage. It was like any hidden desire I had of a woman, she was fulfilling, and I couldn't turn her away." Mathias was trying to hide his flustered face, but there was no hiding the sweat beading on his forehead or the red color of his cheeks. "I'm sorry Cullen, but the mage looked like your friend...and now every time I've seen her-"
"Enough," Cullen barked, although a bit more civilized. He was tired of listening to the templars talk of their lewd dreams involving a mage with a striking appearance comparable to Astrid, it was frustrating and even infuriating; for Cullen was having them too. However, his weren't very pleasurable or at all carnal, but a terrifying nightmare of the woman he loved tormenting him in every way possible. Why was this happening?
"There's something else you need know my friend," Mathias spoke, a bit better now that he had confessed his sensual dream to Cullen.
"What is it Mathias?" Cullen asked, the idea of an evil Astrid suddenly clouding his mind.
Mathias paused. "Knight-Commander Greagoir has been investigating the possibility your friend is a blood mage," terror struck Cullen's face, "and has issued the Rite of Tranquility to be performed...tonight."