After a while of mingling with the nobles, Talyn managed to slip away to the servant's quarters. In a closet nearby there were weapons that one of the spies had left for her and the others. Talyn strapped her daggers to her thigh and saw Solas' staff still leaning against the wall in the back corner. A worried frown settled on her face for a moment.
But she was pleasantly surprised when she turned around and found him standing there with a small smile on his face.
Solas went past her to get his staff, and when he came out he took her hand and planted a kiss on her knuckles. That small gesture turned Talyn speechless, and her damn tattoos lit up like a Yuletide fire. He smiled amusedly at her, and she felt the blood rush to her cheeks. His words from last night in her dream rang in her ears.
You're my salvation.
Despite the fact she didn't know what he meant by that, she couldn't help her smile.
Cole did his little materializing-into-thin-air trick, forcing Talyn to focus on the task at hand. Without a word the three of them slithered their way to the servant's quarters, making sure to stick to the shadows so no one saw them. Talyn took out the key that she had tucked away into the top of her dress and pushed it into the lock. As she predicted, it fit perfectly. With a quiet click, the door opened.
They walked into what looked like a kitchen. Herbs hung from the racks dangling from the ceilings, pieces of shattered dishes lay scattered on the floor, decorating the white flour that covered the tiles as well. There were dark red blotches that made the flour clump together, and it trailed out of the kitchen into the adjoining room.
Talyn pulled her daggers out and followed the blood trail with quick, light steps, getting white flour on the hem of her gown. She pressed her back against the wall and peered around the corner into the next room. When she didn't see anything moving, she motioned for Solas and Cole to follow her, and walked into the room.
An elf woman sat with her back against the wall next to the door that led to the gardens. From the ashen look to her skin and the fact she had a stiff hand stuck to her bleeding belly, it was safe to assume that she was dead. Her cloudy, glassy eyes stared helplessly at the door behind Talyn.
She bent down and gently slid a hand over the poor woman's face, closing her eyes, and whispered an elvhen prayer that Dalish had taught her.
Then she straightened her back and continued out the door.
The gardens were closed off from the rest of the party, which was a blessing for the three trespassers. But they all stayed silent, just in case their enemy was skulking around the neatly trimmed shrubbery and the flowers that were slowly withering in the winter cold. Most of the paths in the gardens was covered with vines that hang off the metal arches that towered above them, so Talyn had to rely heavily on her abnormal hearing.
They came across another fountain bathed in moonlight, but the water that spouted from it was tinged with red. She walked around the fountain and saw the culprit for the contaminated water. An Orlesian noble was draped over the lip of the fountain, a dagger sticking out of his back. The noble's blood dripped slowly into the pool of water and formed a puddle around his feet.
Talyn yanked the dagger out of his back. It was a beautiful weapon, the hilt made of gold and the blade black as Solas' necklace.
Talyn made a mental note to ask him about that necklace, once this was done with.
Talyn looked closer at the blade, tilting it back so the light hit the words engraved on it.
"Duke Gaspard was here tonight." She said in a low voice, handing the dagger to Solas for him to see the name on the blade.
"We're not alone in this courtyard." Cole whispered.
Moments after he said that, Talyn's ears picked up on footsteps coming from the right. She whirled around and threw one of her daggers at the same moment Solas shot an ice spike from his hand. Neither of them made the intended target in time because Cole had appeared behind the man and slit his throat.
Talyn snorted and joked, "Cole is a better assassin than me. Maybe he should be the Inquisitor."
"No one is better than you, Rasdalalen." The spirit responded. And, of course, he was completely serious.
His response brought her back to her strange memory episode. Rasdalalen. It turned her muscles into stone. The intensity of her shame and guilt made it so that she couldn't even blink her eyes. It seemed that even her heart stopped beating.
"Cole!" Solas barked, although it wasn't much of a bark, since they were keeping their voices low. "Do not speak of that."
"Sorry." Cole replied.
Their voices sounded far away, an echo in the back of her mind. All she could hear was the poor elf woman's pleas for Talyn to help her, and that maniacal laugh that belonged to the demon that haunted her.
"LOOK WHAT YOU DID!" The red headed goddess was shouting in her head.
'She died. I killed her.' Talyn kept thinking to herself.
Solas stepped in front of Talyn and placed both of his hands on her cheeks. His gentle voice floated through her ears, louder than the others.
"Ma'alas'en, garas na nin em."
My world, come back to me.
The comforting warmth radiating from Solas thawed Talyn's winter skin. The phantom screams faded away, and Talyn finally blinked. She looked up at Solas and let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding.
Solas ran his thumb over her cheek, which was the only indication to Talyn that she had been crying.
"Are you alright?" He whispered in concern.
"Your world, huh?" Talyn whispered back.
He smiled. "A figure of speech."
Talyn playfully shoved him away from her. "Yeah, we'll talk about your "figure of speech" later."
Ma'alas'en. He called her ma'alas'en. It was a term of endearment that she had never heard in her time with the Inquisition. Ma vhenan, my heart, was the only one she had ever heard from her fellow elves. Her tattoos glowed faintly again at the thought of his voice whispering that word.
She shook it off the best she could. She couldn't get sappy right now.
She walked over to where Cole was still standing over the body of the man who had been about to attack them. He had been wearing the same checkered armor and helmet that looked like a jester's hat that the Venatori liked to wear. The deep wound in his throat was still oozing blood. She pulled out her dagger that was sticking out of his chest.
"I think we have the answer to the Empress' assassin." She said, shoving the man with her foot so he rolled over onto his stomach.
"We should go back and tell the others." Cole suggested.
"We shouldn't make any decisions until the others know." Talyn agreed with him.
"This doesn't feel right." Solas spoke. "This seems too…"
"Easy?" Talyn finished his sentence. "I know. Maybe the others will have some insight into what we should do next."
Talyn wanted to search the gardens for more Venatori, but she was also afraid that they might be running out of time to save the Empress. If Gaspard truly was the one behind this, then her killer was sitting across from her at this exact moment.
So, they made their way back to the closet where they stashed their weapons. Cole disappeared, leaving Talyn and Solas alone. For once, she wasn't covered in blood from their brief fight, but her dress was dirty from trailing on the ground. Blood and flour were sticking to her legs.
"And this is why I wanted to wear pants." She complained as she leaned against the wall and tried to brush off the dirt on her shoes. "How am I going to explain this?"
Solas chuckled, and with a flick of his fingers, the dirt, blood and flour were brushed off the dress.
Talyn grinned. "Having you around is highly beneficial."
That seductive, wolfish grin she has seen him wear in her dream shone on his face. "In more ways than one."
That made her heart skip a beat.
"And what are those other ways?" She whispered.
He leaned in close to her, so close that if Talyn had moved a fraction of an inch they could have kissed.
"We can talk about that later, ma'alas'en."
And then he walked away.
Talyn felt like she had to catch her breath. She cursed under her breath and started walking back to the ballroom. Was she ever going to get used him? Or was she going to be in a state of nervous excitement around him for the rest of her life?
Everything in the ballroom was the same as when Talyn left it. People were dancing, drinks were being served, and she could see Celine and Gaspard sitting at a table above the dancefloor, and it looked like they were arguing. Her eyebrows furrowed in worry, and she scanned the room for Cullen, Leiliana, Cassandra and Josephine. When she saw Josephine's brilliantly beautiful golden gown, she started weaving through the people to get to her.
"Lady Inquisitor," the Empress' cousin intercepted her. "I've been waiting for a chance to speak with you."
Of course, just at the precise moment that Talyn returned from discovering a murdered noble, Gaspard's sister decided to come speak with her. What was her name? She tried to recall what Josephine said her name was. Florence? Florissa? Florianna?
Florianne!
Talyn bowed. "Grand Duchess Florianne, it is a pleasure to officially meet you."
Florianne did a curtsey. "Our brief introduction at the beginning of the night wasn't enough for me. I wanted to welcome you to my party myself."
Florianne set this night up? Talyn didn't know that.
"You've been the center of attention tonight. Trying to find a moment with you proved difficult."
Talyn smiled politely. "Yes, it seems the entire party wants to have a conversation with me. I must admit, the attention is a little overwhelming."
Florianne laughed. "Welcome to the Elite, Lady Inquisitor. Those with power are not alone often."
Talyn didn't like the way she referred to the Orlesian court as the "Elite".
"May I have a dance with you, Inquisitor Talyn?"
Talyn really needed to get the council together. But if she refused the Grand Duchess, she would draw unnecessary attention. So she forced a smile, and offered a hand.
"Absolutely."
They walked down to the dance floor and started twirling with the others. No one spoke about Talyn's race this time, not when she was dancing with the Grand Duchess. In fact, they were afraid to even look at them.
"Are you enjoying my party, Inquisitor?" Florianne asked.
"It is a spectacle I have never seen before." Talyn replied honestly.
"I am glad. It took great effort to arrange tonight's negotiations. But one party would use this night to commit the blackest of treason. The security of the Empire is at stake, neither of us wants to see it fall."
Talyn was starting to grow suspicious.
"Do we both want that, Lady Florianne?"
Talyn wished she could see her face so she could know what the woman was thinking. She supposed that that was the point of the masks.
"I hope we are of one mind on this." The Duchess replied.
"In times like these, it is hard to tell friend from foe, is it not, Your Grace?"
"I know you arrived here as a guest of my brother Gaspard. And I know the Inquisition has been everywhere in the palace. You are a curiosity to many, Inquisitor. And a concern for some."
'I could say the same to you, Lady Florianne.'
"Am I the curiosity or the concern to you, Your Grace?"
Florianne seemed to dodge her question. "This night is of great importance, Inquisitor. I wonder what role you will play in it."
They spun around again.
"Do you yet know who is friend and who is foe?" She continued, "who in the court can be trusted?"
"I trust my instincts, Your Grace. They have yet to fail me."
That made Florianne smile. "You are smart. Everyone in the Winter Palace is alone."
Everyone in Orlais was alone, it seemed to Talyn.
"It cannot have escaped your notice that certain parties have been engaged in dangerous machinations tonight."
"I thought dangerous machinations was an Orlesian national sport." Talyn was only half-way joking.
The dance was over, so Talyn led Florianne to the stairs that would bring them to the second story.
"You have little time," Florianne whispered in her ear. "The attack will come soon. You must stop Gaspard before he strikes. In the garden of the Royal Wing, you will find the captain of my brother's mercenaries. He will be the proof you need."
And then she walked away from her.
It was hard not to rush when she went about gathering her council. She had to walk normally, smile, look graceful and perfect, and stop to say hello to those who wanted to speak with her when all she wanted to do was run screaming through the room for her friends.
She told Leiliana to help, and then went to look for Solas.
She found him in a room that led to yet another garden, leaning against a pillar and looking out of a window, a glass of wine in his hand.
"Enjoying yourself?" She asked.
"I've forgotten how much I enjoyed this." He responded. "I do adore the heady blend of power, intrigue, danger and sex that permeates these events."
"You've been to these things often?"
"No." Solas corrected himself quickly. "Only in the Fade. But I've always loved watching them."
"Good." Talyn smiled. "We're gathering to talk about what to do. Gaspard isn't the only suspect now."
She left the room, and a few minutes later, he followed.
They all gathered in one of the less occupied rooms. Talyn told them all about the Venatori agent and Gaspard.
"Solas, get me wine!" Talyn barked out an order when someone got to close to their group. She immediately regretted her tone of voice, but Solas didn't seem bothered by it. He did as he was told while they talked about something else briefly.
When he returned, Talyn thanked him for the wine, and handed it to Josephine. She was more than happy to accept it.
"I'm not so sure that Gaspard did it." Talyn whispered. "Florianne approached me after we got back, and she told me that Gaspard planned to attack tonight. She said his captain of the mercenaries is in the Royal Garden."
"She could just be trying to save her cousin and not have her family find out she betrayed her brother." Josephine said.
Talyn ran a hand through her hair. "I just don't know. There's something off about that woman. The way she spoke, the way she said it… she didn't even sound concerned, or panicked, or anything at all."
"She's the Grand Duchess of Orlais, Inquisitor. All nobility are good at concealing their emotions. That is how The Game is played." Cassandra added to the conversation.
"That's my point, Cassandra. We can't trust anything anyone says."
"I agree with Talyn. We could be walking into a trap." Leiliana sided with her.
"It doesn't matter though, does it? We have to see what is in the Royal Garden." Cullen spoke up.
Talyn looked to Solas, who nodded at her. And then she looked to the council. "Solas, Cole, Cassandra and I will see if Florianne is telling the truth. The rest of you, keep an eye on the Empress."
OMG you guys, I'm so sorry. I was stuck on this chapter for MONTHS. I just couldn't figure out what to do! So, in an effort to cure my writers block, I went back and edited the rest of the story. I didn't change a whole lot, mostly just did some grammar edits and what not so if you don't want to reread the whole thing you don't have to. HOWEVER, there are a few chapters that you should reread because there are some scenes that I completely changed.
chapter seventeen, twenty one and twenty two are the only ones with major scene changes. I might have missed some, but I'm pretty sure that's it.
Thank you guys so much for sticking with me through this bullshit writers block! You guys are awesome!
Your Totally Unreliable Entertainer,
C.J.