The first light of day filtered through the light curtains of the room, putting Loghain into silhouette as Lhiannon opened her eyes. He was sleeping on his side and facing her, a lock of his unbound hair resting across his cheek. It was at times like this, when he was most relaxed, that he looked younger than his years, younger than the lines on his face and the circles under his eyes would otherwise claim. The metal of his wedding band caught the slight light in the room and winked at her, reminding her once more that he was hers, now and always. With a small smile, Lhiannon reached over and brushed the lock behind his ear, the tips of her fingers lightly brushing his skin. Loghain sighed sleepily, turning to lie on his back with an arm thrown over his eyes.

Oh, still sleepy are we? I wonder how quickly I can wake him up…

Loghain had pushed the blankets down to his waist, leaving his bare chest exposed, rising and falling gently as he slept. With a grin, Lhiannon allowed her eyes to sweep across his bare skin, across the network of scars she knew as intimately as her own and down to where his waist was obscured by the light covers. With two fingers, she carefully pulled the blanket up and away from his body, letting it fall near his knees. Slowly and carefully moving so as not to wake him before she was ready, she moved closer to him, leaning over and lightly brushing her lips against a nipple on his chest. She lightly ran her tongue over it and gently suckled, feeling the small peak stiffen under her touch. Not wanting the other side to feel neglected, she leaned over farther, her lips leaving a soft trail in their wake as she brushed the other nipple with her tongue.

"Perhaps you should awaken me every day with your mouth, minx."

Loghain's sleepy voice was accompanied by his arms wrapping around her, first pulling her up to his mouth for a blistering kiss before guiding her down toward the part of him that required her attention, the part of him that she could see rapidly stiffening beneath the thin cloth of his sleeping pants. As she straddled him and set about to uncovering what he wished her to, she felt his hand bury itself in her dark hair, his calloused fingers gently brushing her scalp. He made a small noise between a sigh and a groan as she wrapped her lips around him, her lips and tongue caressing his smooth, heated flesh.

Loghain watched as Lhiannon's head moved, her hair spilling around her face to tickle his flesh and drive him toward release. It coiled within him, a tensing and tightening of his nerves before his release came. He groaned in pleasure as he thrust his hips, driving himself further inside Lhiannon's mouth. She took his seed, sighing through her nose as she did so. After a moment, she moved up his body and laid her head on his chest, her hands resting on his sides. The strong, steady beat of his heart was perhaps her favorite sound in the entire world, the thrum of life within him defying the death that coursed through their veins. Loghain gently caressed her head as she listened to his beating heart, a thumb brushing the smooth skin of her cheek.

"You seem no worse for wear after the fight yesterday," Loghain mused, brushing a hand over Lhiannon's shoulder. He felt her tense and wince slightly at his touch. He sat up, sitting her upright with him and lifting the hem of her nightshirt, a shirt that had been one of his own until she had usurped it. Her right shoulder was a mass of dark bruising despite the healing she had received for it. Leaning forward, Loghain brushed his lips over the injury, eliciting a light chuckle from Lhiannon.

"Though that move looked impressive, it was foolish," Loghain said, the sting of his chastisement negated by the trail of kisses he left along her skin.

"Ah, but it did work. Think you can kiss the injury and make it better?" Lhiannon grinned, her hands stroking the smooth skin of his back.

A slight scoff came from Loghain, the exhale of his breath warming Lhiannon's skin as his lips continued to flutter across the injured flesh. "I assume you will regale Teagan and Raelyn with the tale of how you received this injury?"

"Of course I will," Lhiannon said, her arms wrapping around her beloved husband. "It's too good an exploit to not share." A grin pulled at the corners of her mouth. "You did look quite fetching dressed as a bandit. Your idea worked rather well."

"I was an outlaw in my youth, though not by choice. It was the usurper that forced my family's hand and drove us to such."

With a swift move, Loghain divested Lhiannon of her nightshirt, pushing her back onto the bed as he lay on top of her. He buried his face in the side of her neck, suckling the sensitive flesh as she giggled softly below him. "You're going to make us late for the debriefing, Loghain."

Loghain chuckled low against her skin, a shiver of want shooting down Lhiannon's spine to settle into her core. Her blood began to heat, her heart thrumming in concert with Loghain's just above hers. "Then perhaps you should stop talking, dear wife, and start concentrating on…other things."

She needed no urging as she wrapped her legs around Loghain's waist, offering her body in a silent demand of want. She urged him on with a low moan and fingernails raking down his back as he entered her with a thrust of his hips.

The darkness was suffocating, dark, hot, and unending. She was standing on her feet, wrists tied tightly together behind her, other ropes wrapped around her thighs, her waist, and her chest. She was lashed to something…

Suddenly, the darkness ended and light assaulted her eyes, each ray of light a prick of pain against them. She blinked rapidly, seeing blurry shapes in front of her. The images began to coalesce into templars, fully armored and holding weapons in their hands, watching as she struggled against the ropes that lashed in to...a pole?

Awareness began to dawn, a dark terror that oozed from her pores like the cold sweat that broke over her body. She looked down, seeing wood and kindling piled around her feet, the acrid smell of grease coating some of the pieces. As she looked up, she saw a priest standing amidst the templars, murmurings of a prayer leaving her lips to be echoed by the templars. They began to sway in unison, their chanting growing to a fever pitch. She continued to struggle against the restraints as the priest approached, a lit torch suddenly in woman's hand. She screamed as the priest threw the torch onto the kindling at her feet, the blaze roaring to life around her. She felt the heat baking her skin, flames licking along the bottom of her robes. Her screams tore open her throat, but even above the roar of the flames and her own anguish, the Canticle of Transfigurations burned her ears as the flames consumed her flesh…

Anders awoke with a start, hearing Raelyn's screams from the bed next to him. He sat bolt upright and saw Raelyn next to him on the bed, curled up into a ball with her hands near her face and fingers turned into claws. Her body twitched madly as she gave voice to her terror. He wrapped himself around her, crooning softly into her ear as he held her.

"Rae, wake up! You're here with me; you're safe…"

With a startled shudder, Raelyn's eyes flew open, wide and unseeing as her screams of terror abruptly ended. A cold sweat broke out over her skin as she trembled, turning and looking at Anders with wide eyes, the panic within them still painfully evident.

"Anders?"

The mage nodded, a gentle hand reaching over Raelyn's shoulder to brush her cheek before he reached down and pulled her tightly against him. With a low murmur, he sent a wave of healing and rejuvenation magic through her, her body relaxing as the soft blue glow washed over her. He leaned forward, placing a soft kiss onto her head. "What was it?"

"A nightmare," Raelyn said, her voice quivering and barely above a whisper. "I dreamed that the templars put their plans for me in motion. They…" Her voice cut off with an audible choke. She brought shaking hands up to her face, sobbing quietly into him, her shuddering causing Anders to pull her instinctively closer to him.

"You don't need to talk about it if you're not ready," Anders said, trying to quash the feeling of dread that settled into his stomach. If Raelyn was not ready to discuss her nightmare or what happened to her in the last few days, he was not going to push her. She would likely tell him in her own time, when she was ready. Forcing the issue was the last thing Anders wished to do.

After several moments, the sound of her quiet sobs and the tension in her body began to fade away. Raelyn took one of Anders' hands in her own, bringing it up to her lips and pressing them gently against the fingertips, kissing each one reverently before kissing the palm. She then turned in his arms, her head resting on the pillow next to his, unbound auburn hair spilling over the pillow and down her body. Anders brushed away a tear that spilled out of her eye, moving his fingers to then brush a lock of hair behind her ear. She looked both beautiful and vulnerable, even with the residual traces of fear still in her eyes. Anders brought his hand back to cup her cheek and watched as she rested her hand on top of his.

"I hate feeling this way," she said, her voice a low growl through clenched teeth. "I hate feeling like I want to jump at every shadow. I hate feeling weak."

"You're not weak, Raelyn. You endured a great deal over the last few days. Many would have simply given up."

"You don't understand," she said, her whisper so low Anders could barely hear it. "I almost did. I wanted to pain to end. I wanted the constant drainings to end. I asked the Maker to just take me so it would all end."

A lump formed in Anders' throat as he listened to Raelyn. His incarceration by the Chantry and templars was often difficult, but never cruel. He had found his hands bound on a number of occasions, but never in such a manner as hers had been. Where his bonds were a matter of precaution taken by the templars against apostate mages, Raelyn's bonds had been cruel and designed specifically to inflict pain as she was secured and silenced. Anders knew that templars were as varied as the grains of sand on a beach; where some templars were kind, others hard of heart. The templars that held Raelyn and Teagan were clearly fanatical and cruel, biased in the worst way against mages. Had he been in her position—forced into a cruel bridle, tightly bound and subjected to constant mana drainings—he likely would have asked the Maker to end his suffering too.

"You're right; I don't understand. But I want to, if you'll let me."

Silence fell between them. Anders stroked her cheek with his thumb, offering his silent comfort. He truly did want to understand what she went through. He also found himself wanting to protect her and ensure that no mage suffered such indignities again. The anger threatened to consume him, his heart beating faster as his anger grew. When Raelyn opened her eyes and looked into his, the anger abruptly and suddenly faded away.

"Thank you, Anders."

"For what, love?"

Raelyn scoffed slightly, a small grin tugging on the corners of her mouth. "For what? Only for coming to my rescue and chasing away the nightmares." The grin faltered slightly. "For not pushing me to talk about what happened just yet. I know the Commander will want to know and I'm preparing myself for it, but it's still…very difficult to think about." She took a deep breath, attempting to keep herself from crying once again. "I just don't understand it, Anders. I've known Eamon for years. Why would he do this?"

Still stroking her cheek with his thumb, Anders watched as Raelyn composed herself once more, a spark of anger flashing in her eyes as he spoke. "I don't know, love. But if I know Lhi and Loghain, they won't stop until they find out what all he's up to. Something is amiss, that much is frightfully obvious."

As they spoke, they heard the bell outside begin to ring. They silently counted as the bell rang eight times, a crier calling out the news of the hour. Raelyn turned her gaze back to Anders, the spark of fire in her eyes replace by the glimmer of mirth. A corner of her mouth pulled upward as she shimmied closer to Anders, pressing her body flush against his. With a gentle push, she maneuvered her top leg between his while one of her hands moved along his body, resting on and then gently squeezing his backside.

"How fast could you get presentable while you were in Kinloch Hold? Before the templars caught you engaged in…activities?"

Anders grinned mischievously, his hands running down her body as he gently pressed his lips to her forehead, then down her nose and finally her lips. "I may be a bit out of practice. Let's say we work on that, shall we?"

At the tolling of the ninth bell, the Grey Wardens, accompanied by Teagan and Sergeant Joanna, gathered in the dining hall, plates of food set upon the table within easy reach. Lhiannon thought it may be best to start the conversation over breakfast, especially since she and Loghain had barely made it to the hall in time, hurried but sated. She thought they would be the last of the participants in the hall and have to endure the catcalls they would undoubtedly hear, but Anders and Raelyn had arrived after they had, brushing smooth their mage robes and Raelyn smoothing her hair in the universal gesture of feminine embarrassment. Lhiannon grinned to herself; clearly, she and Loghain were not the only ones running late.

Lhiannon watched as Sigrun leaped up from her chair at the sight of first Teagan, then Raelyn, giving each of her friends a firm hug as her light and joyous laugh rang through the dining hall. The dwarf was feeling better, but still moving gingerly from her ordeal.

"I'm so sorry that I left you," she had told each of them, her eyes downcast as the guilt of her fleeing washed over her once more. "I can't help but think I should have done something to help you. I feel like a complete coward."

Teagan and Raelyn both exchanged a small smile before Teagan went down on one knee, bringing his eyes on level with Sigrun's. He put a gentle hand on each of her shoulders. "Sigrun, if it were not for you, the Grey Wardens may never have learned of our plight. What you did was very brave; it was not the act of a coward, but of a brave and noble soul who did what she had to do to help her friends."

"Sig, don't you dare call yourself a coward," Raelyn said, her voice emphatic. "You saved both of us. You risked your own life for us and for that, Teagan and I will always be grateful."

"Well, if you both say so," Sigrun said, her eyes moving between Teagan and Raelyn. "I still don't feel like much of a hero."

As Teagan stood and nodded to Sigrun, Loghain called them all to the table, ready to get the debriefing underway. Before he could bring their meeting to order, Teagan held up a hand as he sat at the table and looked between those gathered: Lhiannon, Loghain, Oghren, Sigrun, Anders, Raelyn, and Sergeant Joanna. "How did you come to find us? I would like to hear the story before we begin, if that is agreeable to you, Commander."

With a nod, Lhiannon took a sip of her honeyed tea. "Of course, Teagan. Well, it all started while Loghain was at Fort Drakon…"

All in all, the trip to Fort Drakon was time well spent. Loghain met with the commander of the troops stationed at the fort, seeking several individuals that could be evaluated for the Grey Wardens. The commander had expected Loghain's arrival, having been told by King Alistair in their morning briefing that the Ferelden Grey Wardens would be on a recruitment drive while in Denerim. Four volunteers had stepped forward and presented themselves to the commander before Loghain had even arrived. The volunteers—three men and a woman—were sent to the Warden compound, where Loghain would thoroughly test their skills before making a final decision regarding their Joining. He found himself looking forward to it; drills with his soldiers made him feel young and alive, even if it left him bruised and sore for several days afterward.

While Loghain was speaking to the fort's commander in the commander's office, a soldier burst in, breathless and agitated. A heavily armored female dwarf had arrived at the city gates, he said, unconscious across the back of a horse. One of the gate guards, a surface dwarf, recognized the armor as being from the Legion of the Dead—a fellow soldier. The gate guards had quickly brought the woman to the fort, hoping they could wake her to determine who she was and her purpose. They could see she had been injured in the shoulder, the wound weeping and stinking of infection. Her armor was covered in stinking black ichor, dried to a crust and beginning to flake off in spots.

As the soldier spoke, Loghain began to feel a tugging in his blood—the itching, feverish sensation that he knew well. He quickly stood. "Take me to this dwarf," he barked sharply, moving swiftly toward the office door, his footsteps echoing through the small office. The commander and soldier followed quickly, moving to his side as Loghain used his senses to track the source of the pull on his blood, the pull growing stronger with every step he took through the fort toward the infirmary.

"Ser Warden, why are you so interested in this dwarf?"

Loghain rounded a corner near the infirmary, his steps sure; he knew this fort like the back of his own hand. Dread began to worm its way into his gut. Only one Warden fit the description he was given and if she was here alone…questions began to form within Loghain's whirling mind. "I sense a Grey Warden."

As he entered the infirmary, he saw several soldiers and a mage gathered around a cot in the corner, hurriedly pulling dark armor off the prone figure and setting the pieces on the floor under it. As Loghain approached, the soldiers gave him wide eyed stares, automatically parting to allow the imposing Warden access to the injured dwarf.

Loghain's eyes fell on the sickly and feverish form of Sigrun on the cot below him, her eyes sunken and ringed with circles darker than the tattoos on her face. He saw the wound on her shoulder, the unmistakable odor of infection assaulting his nostrils. He turned his attention to the mage. "Is she stable to move? I want to take her to the Warden compound."

"Not unless you have a healer with you there," the mage said, the man's hands moving over the wound on Sigrun's shoulder. "This infection is progressing rapidly. I'll need to open the wound further and bleed it to try and clean it out."

Loghain scoffed loudly, not bothering with any sort of social grace in holding it back. Having his suggestion and plan questioned by this lickspittle served to further his irritation. "I wouldn't advise that for you. There is a Warden healer at our compound. Now, can I move her or not?"

The mage scowled deeply, but nodded. "Let's move quickly then, ser. Your mage had best be adept at the healing arts." Loghain scoffed irritably as he lifted Sigrun into his arms. Anders had likely forgotten more about magical healing than this mage ever knew to begin with.

A soldier was sent ahead to the Warden compound, bringing word that Loghain was coming with an injured Grey Warden. Lhiannon and Anders gathered medical sundries and lyrium potions while Oghren gathered hot water and rags from the kitchens. Loghain came in moments later carrying a limp and feverish Sigrun. He took her to the small infirmary in the compound, setting her on a high table as Anders and Lhiannon began to chant their spells. Loghain gently cleaned the wound with warm water and rags. Oghren offered his flask of home brewed whiskey—"it will clean the wound," he explained—and with a shrug from Lhiannon, Loghain poured some of it on the open wound. Sigrun jerked involuntarily as the liquid hit the wound; had she been conscious, she likely would have attempted to rip Oghren's beard out. After several moments of chanting, the angry wound began to close, an angry red scab sealing the wound shut. Anders began to affix a healing poultice to Sigrun's skin.

"We can do more healing later, but I think we have successfully treated the worst of it," Anders explained, taking a clean rag from Loghain and wiping his sweaty forehead, his voice slightly out of breath. "Her body needs to do some of the healing work; it will heal better that way. Magical healing can only do so much."

Lhiannon smoothed Sigrun's matted hair. "Can we wake her? I'm concerned as to why she's here alone."

"As am I," Loghain agreed. "She was supposed to travel with Teagan and Raelyn through southern Ferelden. If she's here alone, something has plainly gone awry."

With a nod, Anders placed his hand on Sigrun's forehead, the words to a rejuvenation spell filling the space between them. After a few moments of chanting, Sigrun's eyes began to flutter rapidly. She shifted slightly on the table and groaned, her face twisting into a grimace as her hand came up to brush her bandaged shoulder. Slowly, her eyes opened, blinking rapidly as she adjusted to the light. Her gaze finally focused on Lhiannon and she breathed a sigh of relief. "Ancestors' tits, I actually made it to Denerim. I feel like crap though."

"I don't doubt it," Lhiannon grinned, taking Sigrun's hand and squeezing it lightly. "Sigrun, what's happened? Where are Teagan and Raelyn?"

"Lhi, they're in trouble," Sigrun said, struggling to sit up. Anders and Lhiannon put their hands on Sigrun, gently guiding her to a sitting position as she rubbed the injury on her shoulder. "Big trouble. Arl Eamon and a bunch of soldiers and templars caught up with us on the road as we were traveling back toward South Reach. He was telling Teagan that Ferelden has fallen off the Maker's path and that you need to be stripped of your titles and face the Maker's justice. He said he was going to hold them as 'guests under his protection' until they arrived in Denerim. I was fishing for dinner and saw them as I returned to camp. I slipped away, grabbed a horse, and left. I had some of his templars chasing me for most of the way."

Loghain scoffed, shaking his head angrily. "Prisoners, more like."

"I'm hoping not, but I fear you may be right. I fear for both of them but with templars involved, I especially fear for Raelyn," Lhiannon said, crossing her arms over her chest and trying to quell the sinking feeling in her stomach.

"And you had a run in with the darkspawn on the way, I assume," Loghain said, indicating the injury on Sigrun's shoulder and pointing to her soiled armor. "How many? Where?"

"Not too many, just a couple of small bands moving toward the Brecilian Forest. They were somewhere between South Reach and Denerim. I kept off the roads so that the templars wouldn't find me, so I can't tell you exactly where."

Lhiannon's mind whirled as the considered Sigrun's words. She looked to Anders, whose face was a mask of barely contained rage. Lhiannon knew Anders and Raelyn were seeing each other, a burgeoning relationship that they were just beginning to explore. He looked up and met Lhiannon's eyes; she saw the anger flashing within them.

"Lhi, we have to watch for them. We can't let the Arl and his bloody templars keep them prisoner."

"We won't let him," Lhiannon said, turning to meet Loghain's gaze. "If Eamon is coming, we need to know when he arrives. I won't let him hold a Grey Warden. He will explain himself."

"We will need to watch the gates for Eamon's arrival," Loghain said, nodding his agreement. "We will be able to sense Raelyn's presence and confront the Arl and his allies when they arrive." He turned his attention to Sigrun. "How far behind you do you estimate the templars to be?"

"I'm not sure," Sigrun said, her forehead bunching as she thought. "We were not far west of South Reach when the Arl confronted us."

Loghain began to calculate distances in his head. "How long were you moving on your own?"

"A couple of days, I think. Time seemed to run together," Sigrun said, her eyes becoming downcast. "I just left them...left them in danger...I feel so guilty for just leaving them..."

"No, Sigrun," Lhiannon said, putting her arm around the dwarf. "You did what you needed to. We know now that Teagan and Raelyn are not simply delayed. We will do everything we can to help them. Had you not arrived, we may never have known what happened."

"If they are indeed moving toward Denerim, they could be here at any time. We need to make ready to find them," Loghain said, his piercing gaze falling to all those gathered. "Oghren, you will remain here at the compound with Sigrun. If anyone comes looking for the Wardens—specifically the Commander and myself—you can say we are indisposed."

Oghren's low chuckle of amusement filled the space between them. "Heh heh, don't you worry. Ol' Oghren will tell 'em a newlyweds story that will put their knickers in a knot." Lhiannon felt her eyes roll skyward as Loghain snorted from beside her.

Folding her arms over her chest, Joanna frowned, a troubled look crossing her dark complexion. "But how will we know which direction they will go once they enter the city? We can't afford to guess. We will spread ourselves too thin trying to cover all avenues."

Loghain's piercing gaze fell to Joanna; he was quickly coming to appreciate the soldier's foresight. "In all my years in Denerim, I have observed that templars always report to the templar compound within the grounds of the Grand Cathedral and only take one of two routes there. They will take the main streets if they wish to show off themselves or their prize and will stick to the back alleys if they wish to travel covertly or with a minimum of fuss."

"Which way do you see them taking?"

"If I were seeking to travel to the Grand Cathedral with a minimum of attention, I would take the back alley."

With a nod of agreement, Lhiannon looked to both Anders and Joanna. "Make yourselves ready then. They won't hold a Warden prisoner if I have anything to say about it. I doubt the King will allow it either."

The Wardens and Joanna made move to leave, but stopped as Loghain held up a hand. "Dress yourselves in your darkest clothing and armor. We will have the appearance of common street thugs. Wear nothing with insignias of any type." Loghain turned his attention to Anders. "If you must take a staff, make sure it is as plain and common a staff as you possess. Take nothing that is unique."

Anders scoffed, shaking his head slightly. "I can cast just fine without a staff."

"Then make yourselves ready now," Lhiannon ordered, standing straight as she prepared to dismiss her people. "We leave for the city gates as soon as everyone is prepared."

As darkness fell over the city, the Grey Wardens—dressed in their nondescript dark armor and cloaks—waited near the city gates for the pull on their blood that signaled Raelyn's approach. Butterflies fluttered in Lhiannon's stomach as she waited, a dark scarf pulled up over her face not only to ward off the chill the darkness brought upon the city, but to hide her features from those that had no need to see them.

A tower guard patrolled the walls above where Lhiannon waited, fidgeting and shifting her weight from foot to foot. If Loghain was here instead of at his post, he'd surely grumble at me to keep still. The guard held a spyglass in hand, sweeping it over the road leading away from the city gates as he stood watch. As Lhiannon began to consider delaying the mission, the guard softly called down to her, informing her of an approaching group of riders, heavily armored and carrying banners. The guard, unfortunately, could not discern the images that no doubt graced the banners. Lhiannon closed her eyes, casting out her tainted senses in the hopes of feeling the unmistakable pull of a Warden on her blood. She was nearly ready to pull her senses back in bitter defeat when she felt a slight tug on her blood that was not from the Wardens stationed nearby. With a wave of her hand, she sent the signal to the other Wardens to move into position as the gatekeepers and approaching riders called out to each other. Their greetings confirmed that the riders were indeed templars and Arl Eamon's entourage.

The Wardens waited in the shadows as the group of riders entered the city and began to move along the deserted main avenue, the footsteps of the horses echoing against the buildings around them. After following the riders for several minutes, the Wardens watched as the entourage split in two; one set heading for the market district while the other turned down a lightly traveled, narrow street near the elven Alienage. Two hooded figures accompanied the heavily armored group traveling near the Alienage. Even in the low light, Lhiannon saw the unmistakable full face helmets and armor that only templars wore. The other group of riders—most likely the Arl and his men—would have to continue on their way.

Loghain and Anders moved among the shadows along the street as Lhiannon and Joanna moved carefully and quietly along the overlapping rooftops to watch the progress of the templars from overhead. When the templars and their two hooded prisoners came closer to the Alienage, Loghain whistled a quiet signal alerting the either Wardens to be ready.

Anders watched as the templars approached, seeing the heavily bound prisoners perched on horses traveling in the center of the circle of riders. The figure that was Teagan sat somewhat straight in the saddle, though Anders could see the exhaustion in the set of his shoulders. The figure that was Raelyn listed in the saddle, her head lolling forward and ropes lashed around her to keep her in the saddle. Anders' anger at what he saw was barely contained; he could feel his power thrumming through him, crawling along his skin like angry insects. He cast out his Warden senses, seeking to ascertain Raelyn's condition. Her unique part of the taint was a haze of physical pain and despair. Anders felt his anger grow deeper. If they've hurt her in any way…

The quiet whistle of Loghain's signal reached his ears. As the templars approached, Anders stepped out into the street, gathering his power around him. Casting out his Warden senses, he could feel Lhiannon's presence on a balcony nearby and Loghain's presence in the shadows of the building next to him. Flicking his eyes along the rooftops, he saw the dark figure of Sergeant Joanna crouched near a chimney, her crossbow no doubt close at hand. The templar commander dismounted from his horse and came toward Anders after calling out a demand for him to move. As the templar approached, Anders began to weave a spell of ice, his hands glowing white a split second before he threw the spell out ahead of him to engulf the closest templars. Crossbow bolts whistled through the air as Joanna picked her targets with sharp efficiency, her bolts designed to injure and incapacitate rather than kill. The surprised templars began to shout challenges to their attackers.

Lhiannon watched from her vantage point on the balcony as Anders cast a cone of cold toward the lead templars, freezing them in place within seconds. Another templar pulled his horse to a stop in front of her position, pulling his sword and preparing to join the battle. He held the sword up in front of him, the blade nearly touching the front of the full helmet the templar wore. He began to murmur an incantation, preparing to smite the mage in front of them.

They could not afford to have Anders and his spells taken out by a smiting. Taking a deep breath, Lhiannon quickly stood and launched herself off the balcony. She sailed through the air and collided shoulder first into the templar, knocking him off his horse and onto the ground with a loud crash of armor against stone. She landed on him with a grunt, the explosion of pain in her shoulder white and blinding. Forcing the pain aside, she worked to subdue the struggling templar below her. She saw a second templar approach out of the corner of her eye attempting to help his colleague. The flash of a sword drew her attention as Loghain brought the hilt of his weapon down onto the second templar's head with a loud thump, putting a large dent into the full helmet and knocking the templar unconscious. The templar slumped to the ground with the scraping of armor on the cobblestones of the street.

Lhiannon looked up and observed the horses carrying the bound and hooded riders abandoned as the templars left their side to help their floundering colleagues. There was a flash of blue as Anders continued to cast his freezing spells upon the templars. Joanna had climbed down from her vantage point, exchanging her crossbow for two short swords; she and Loghain were engaged in close combat with two templars, one of which appeared to be the commander of the small group. They traded furious blows back and forth, grunts of exertion and pain heard above the crashing of metal on metal. Lhiannon began to whisper a spell of sleep, watching as the templar resistance began to wane.

Anders saw what she was casting and began to help with his own spell, stacking it on top of Lhiannon's spell. One by one, the templars who were not already unconscious began to fall asleep, falling to the ground with a clatter of metal on stone. Loghain and Joanna began to drag unconscious templars into an abandoned warehouse nearby, leaving their riderless horses behind in the street. Joanna and Loghain climbed up on the horses that carried the bound and hooded prisoners while Lhiannon and Anders mounted two of the riderless horses and followed Loghain and Joanna through the deserted streets to another warehouse several blocks away. As they traversed the streets, Lhiannon reached out with her tainted senses to check on Raelyn. The taint she felt between them was a haze of pain and exhaustion. Turning to her side, Lhiannon could feel Anders' unease as they traveled, his worry plainly evident through their shared taint. They arrived at the warehouse several moments later, pulling the horses inside and securing the door behind them. Loghain and Lhiannon guided Teagan off his horse while Joanna and Anders tended to Raelyn. Loghain pulled his hunting knife from his boot, cutting Teagan's bonds while Lhiannon gently removed the hood that covered his head. While she was prepared to see Teagan silenced, Lhiannon was not prepared to see the cruel bridle secured to him, rivulets of dried blood caked on his skin. Reaching around Teagan's head, Lhiannon froze the lock securing the bridle in place and with a well-placed hit from Loghain's hunting knife, the lock shattered into fragments. Lhiannon gently pulled the leather straps and bridle away from Teagan's head, breathing a healing spell toward him as she did so.

"It's not much in the way of healing, but hopefully it is helping."

Teagan nodded with a small smile as the last of his bonds fell away. Turning toward Raelyn, Lhiannon saw that Anders and Joanna had freed her from her bridle and bonds, the soft blue glow of healing magic dancing across Raelyn's skin.

"…and the rest of the story you know," Lhiannon said, setting her fork to the side of her plate and propping her chin on her folded hands. "Teagan, Raelyn; I would now hear of your trip to the west. I understand if you would not rather talk about…more recent days."

This is a bit of a filler chapter...they're not my favorite chapters, but they need to be done sometimes. I had to cut this chapter off where I did for a variety of reasons. First, we're over 6500 words already (Shakespira's grocery list strikes again!). Second, this has been a crazy week with work. I wanted to continue listening to the Wardens as they sat around the breakfast table, but work this week has taken a lot out of me mentally. I would rather cut the chapter off now than continue on and give you crap. So, the next chapter continues where this one left off and will also serve as a "refresher" type of chapter; the Wardens will go over what they know of Eamon's exploits immediately before the Landsmeet. Thank you to Shakespira for the idea of a refresher chapter. You are far too good to me, my friend. :)

I have a new piece of art out on my deviantArt page. It's not perfect but something I did to calm my mind after a crazy week of work last week. It's here (don't forget to take the spaces out!): http :/josielange. deviantart. com /#/d49dxzy

Loads of thanks and chocolate chip cookies to reviewers Aura of Darkness Night, Shakespira, JackOfBladesX, Darkchubb, cloud1004, Tyanilth, Arsinoe, Jessie Long, Gene Dark (who flooded my inbox, but I loved it!), Kendoka Girl, and Ventisquear. "Retribution" has now officially received more reviews than RA did and in 14 fewer chapters. Thank you, thank you, thank you all for your generous support!

Thanks to all you quiet readers as well. Your support is much appreciated.