Chapter Forty-Six

Gallows

I was exhausted – I had been up half the night saving Donnic. Thank Elune that was the only thing we ran into.

But regardless, it had taken more time than I had thought to dispose of the men – there were so many. I guess they expected the company to show up, but they had underestimated our abilities.

I was letting Hawke and Aveline deal with the Viscounts office while I took Andan and Altatra to the Gallows to get Cullens' answer and check on Dibink and the work force.

Dibink made a beeline for me the moment I showed up. I saw Meredith frown as she and Cullen trailed behind the gnome.

Dibink said, "Tara – perfect timing, really. We just finished the upgrade to the Gallows. A few of the Goblins took offence to how low-tech this place was, though. They added working electricity for lights. The Gnomes were offended by the kitchen being so old that they upgraded that. As requested, a special emphasis was put on Knight-Captain Cullens' office and bedroom – he has the best washroom and such. One of the Goblins even installed a tele-communicator at his desk and next to his bed so that you can video-call him whenever you want. That was one of your finer invention ideas. High-Tinkerer Mekkatorque himself showed up to oversee the work, Tara! Trade Prince Gazlowe could do no less but show up too. I tell you, your man showed them the utmost respect – I think both have taken a liking to him at least."

Cullen was flushed, "You said they were the Gnome and Goblin leaders – it's only right to show a leader the proper respect due…"

Dibink nodded, "Yeah but Horde and Alliance warred for so long that Humans being nice to Goblins is new to them. Gazlowe was a neutral party before accepting the role of Trade Prince. He absolutely refused to pick a side – though he did show favoritism to the Horde on occation, he'd take Alliance money for work all the same. He's a good guy. If it wasn't Thrall that asked him to take over the position… I don't think he would have."

"Who is Thrall?" Meredith asked.

"Green Jesus," I muttered. Dibink started sniggering and even Altatra had to cover her mouth. I blinked when I realized I said that out loud, "Sorry! Thrall is a shaman and former Warchief. He founded the nation of Durotar and reintroduced Shamanism to the Horde. He was raised as a slave and gladiator. In the Second War, he led a rebellion to free his fellow orcs and was named Warchief. His relationship with nature rivals my own. He's the Orc representative on the Horde Council – the new form of leadership that replaced having a Warchief."

Cullen tilted his head, "Okay – but why did you call him green Jesus?"

I groaned, "Because I'm exhausted. The man is a saint and I was reminded of the major gods' son from a religion in my first home land. His name was Jesus – he died for the sins of people and could turn water into wine, blah, blah, blah… it isn't important. I was up all night saving people so the filter between my brain and my mouth sort of fried."

Cullen chuckled, "Indeed… now I must ask, how much are you paying for the upgrades?"

"Oh… uh… you'd have to ask Inas. He takes care of my finances and paying people when I contract a job. A job like this is expensive, but it won't make that big an impact on my bank… why?"

Meredith snorted, "I thought you might answer for him – so I asked him to ask. I do not like being indebted."

Dibink snorted, "Okay, Commander; let me lay this out for you. To start, Tara did this for him – because she really spoils the people she cares for. Next, you couldn't afford any of this. Your room alone was the cheapest and still worth 200 gold coins. Using someone to ask a question like that is unbefitting of someone of your position."

Altatra spoke next, "Indeed – shall we call Lord Inas to ask the numbers?"

Meredith – not believing that she could never finance this – said, "Yes – call him."

I sighed and let Andan be the one to contact him while I looked at Cullen, "So…"

"I will be attending a wedding tomorrow," he said. Meredith looked slightly smug – she really didn't know the wedding was my sons' wedding.

I nodded, "Asthan and Alstus will be glad that you can make it. They've wanted to meet you in person for some time."

Merediths' face fell, "Who are Asthan and Alstus?"

"The grooms for the wedding tomorrow," I replied. Cullen nodded, "The brides' name is Bella, right?"

I nodded, "She's from Redcliff."

"What gift did you get?" Cullen asked.

"Well, she's pregnant so I hand-crafted a Crib from me and a rocking chair from you…" I said with a shrug.

"You hand-crafted them?" Dibink asked. I nodded, "No magic was used in the making of those items. That's what the lumber was for."

"You used high-grade wood, if I recall. Where did you learn to work wood without magic," Altatra asked. Before I could answer, Andan said, "Portal to Stormwinds' throne room, Tara."

I opened it. Inas and Anduin walked through. Inas said, "Okay – you need what?"

"Figures – I need numbers on cost here."

He looked down at the clipboard in his hand and clicked his pen, "Oh – the Goblins are charging 2133 gold for their portion – they said the Tele-coms were free of charge. They put in 1056 for their portion of the plumbing work and 1077 for the Electrical wiring. The gnomes charged 1896 – again, 1056 for their portion of the plumbing work and 840 for upgrading the kitchens. So for those, you paid out 4,029 gold. This is not including taxes. Taxes of 16 percent raised that price to 4673 golds and 64 silver coins. I included gifts for the High-Tinkerer and the Trade Prince – each equaling to 493 gold coins – bringing the price to 5,659 gold and 64 silver coins. As requested, I also purchased the materials personally; that brings the price to a grand total of 48,642 gold; 53 silver and 4 copper coins. Material cost being 42,982 gold; 89 silver and 4 coppers since we opted for solar powered – reducing the extra cost of generator materials and battery costs."

Cullens' jaw slackened and Meredith looked furious as she said, "So we could never have afforded this?"

"Not without someone spreading their legs – probably Cullen since he's the best looking one here," Inas said with a grin. I glared at him and a deep growl reverberated in my throat, "Mine."

"Sure, sure – he's yours. But hey, if Hawke becomes available Vanessa wants me to secure a threesome."

Anduin sputtered a laugh and Hawke grinned, "I'm free now, Inas."

"When would be a good time for you?" Inas teased. "We'll talk later – the Knight-Commander looks ready to kill."

Anduin said, "To tell you the truth, Knight-Commander; the Duchess could afford to update this whole city and still have enough left over to topple the economy of Stormwind, Orgrimmar and Dalaran in one fell swoop. This minimal amount was not quite a dent in her petty fund."

Inas nodded, "I finally inventoried her bank – some of that stuff is so old and legendary that it could buy Dalaran, Anduin. I'm not sure how she got ahold of original artifacts from Queen Azsharas' Zin-Azshari, Eldre'Thalas, Loreth'Aran, Vashj'ir, and Kel'Theril. She has a perfectly preserved Zin-Azshari Astrolabe, Anduin. She could found a Highborn Museum with all the original artifacts. She even has many Black Empire original Artifacts. Things we didn't know existed. The things in her vaults could re-write our histories as we know them – the League of Explorers would be salivating if they knew about just one item – let alone all of them."

I chuckled, "They can look and examine – but they can't remove them from the vaults."

"Should I charge them?" Inas asked. I shrugged, "I don't care – I don't really need the money…"

"True… we'll see what they say."

I cleared my throat, "Anyway… Inas… you need to like… you need to go…"

He looked lost, "What – why?"

Cullen shook his head, "She's uncomfortable with the King."

I flushed – he had noticed?

Anduins' face fell, "I… actually came with today to apologize. I am well aware of how… strongly I came on over the past few years and that I truly never went about it in the right way… at all. I was recently visited by Kayn Sunfury, of all people – he really…"

I covered my face in horror, "Tell me he didn't."

Inas laughed jovially, "He did!"

Cullen looked confused, "What?"

Anduin turned bright red as he shifted uncomfortably, "Kayn lectured me extensively on my failure to be a proper suitor – not wooing her, complimenting her or doing anything more that assuming that if I kept asking she would eventually say yes. He did say that he was made aware of these and his own failings through a lecture given by you, Lord Rutherford."

"I… I'm not a… a Lord, Your Majesty…" Cullen flushed and rubbed at the back of his neck.

Anduin lifted an eyebrow, "I was under the impression you and the Duchess were betrothed."

I nodded, "Technically, we are – since we were already given permission from the top religious leader."

"Mmmh – then you can legally be considered a Lord of Azeroth – unless you two break the betrothal in a way that your religious leader says that the marriage won't happen since it seems this person is the higher power?"

I nodded, "The Divine is an authority that even the kings and empress listen to. She sits on the Sunburst Throne."

Anduin considered, "Well, as you know, Lady Stormlight; such a high power declaring a betrothal means that only they have the authority to break it. I was the one who had to break our betrothal for the same reason. I assume the agreement is written in record?"

I handed him the note – Meredith looked furious and I couldn't quite place why this time.

Anduin read it over, "The way this is stated… even if you married Alistair, you'd still be engaged to Cullen… are multiple marriages allowed here – I know they are among some regions of Azeroth…"

I flushed, "Er… well, yes, apparently. Roselle asked someone from the Grand Cathedral who asked the Divine directly… Andraste – their prophet and a prominent historical figure – was part of the Alamarri peoples where multiple spouses was accepted and even encouraged if the 'main' spouse was a powerful figure. Back then, it usually meant a man had many wives or mistresses. Due to this, it isn't forbidden in modern day to have multiple marriages – it just isn't expressly stated that it is allowed because they want to encourage monogamy. No more than 3 spouses to one person though…"

Cullen looked absolutely stunned, "How… why did she even ask?"

"… She asked upon a request from someone else." I shrugged. Meredith sneered, "Your request?"

I glared, "No; not my request. Anyone who knows me knows that I would never ask such a thing."

Inas cleared his throat, "She's never been with someone else while in a committed relationship before, commander. It could be said that Loyalty is her fatal flaw."

Cullen blinked "Her what?"

"A fatal flaw – otherwise called Hamartia – is a flaw which causes an otherwise noble or exceptional person to bring about their own downfall and, often, their eventual death." I explained.

Inas pointed to me, "Yes – that. Tara would risk her life for those she cares for. She would kill gods to save us – she could be your greatest ally or your worst enemy depending on which side you take in conflict. If those she cares for are warring with each other – she would use herself as a shield to stop them. I was never allowed to hurt Lord Theron of Quel'Thalas, he couldn't harm me – no one would dare harm uncle Magni. Coming here – finding more people she loved and cared for is not entirely a good thing, believe it or not. If you were to need to arrest a 'pack' member… things can get messy. If someone hurt you then… I shudder to think of what might happen. There was a time when someone tried to harm me… she quite literally tore the very ground I was imprisoned beneath and watched in impassivity as my captor screamed while lava surrounded him. I still have the occasional nightmare about those screams and that was 40 years ago. Not to mention what she did to stop N'Zoth from killing me…"

Anduin snorted, "Did you see what she did to Gul'dan? Everyone hails you as a hero for his demise, but Gul'dan signed his death certificate when he killed my father. Illidan landed the final blows – everyone knows that – but Illidans' daughter was the one who made his last days miserable."

I smirked darkly, "Shadows are everywhere, King Anduin – he could never hide from me. There is no light without the Dark – and there is no Dark that I cannot see."

Anduin and Inas shuddered. Cullen looked curious, "What did you do?"

"I drove the man insane, Cullen. But the time he did die, he welcomed it with open arms. I whispered from the shadows – and since no one knew about my special title back then…"

Cullen chuckled, "The one that Elune bestowed upon you?"

Inas' head snapped up, "You told him?"

I nodded softly, "It was a slip of the tongue, but yes – he knows my strong affinity for shadows is connected to my immunity to Lyrium."

Meredith frowned, "Immunity?"

"I can't be made tranquil, nor can I use Lyrium as a power booster," I shrugged.

She looked like she really didn't believe it – but that would be her own fault. I shrugged, "Anyway – I did what I needed to do. Cullen, I have a proper formal outfit for you already so don't worry about that. I suggest coming over once you get off work tonight since we need to be through the portal rather early in the day – I'm a Bridesmaid, unfortunately. Meaning you will be a groomsman. Alistair will be there with Duncan but they aren't in the actual wedding party."

He groaned, "That means I have to stand up there with the Grooms, right?"

I nodded, "Yeah – and it's why your formal outfit was taken care of by them. The Bridesmaids all wear the same dress, traditionally and the Groomsmen all wear the same outfit too. As highly successful buissness men, they splurged and paid for all five of the groomsman and bridesmaids outfits themselves; which is not typically done."

Cullen coughed, "I'll be sure to thank them…"

"If they hadn't, I would have. You're my fiancé, so what's mine is yours at the moment. Seriously…"

Inas sniggered, "Even if you just wanted to spend all her money… good luck – she really does make more in a year than she can spend in a decade. Her specialized shops in Orgrimmar, Stormwind and Dalaran all saw a financial boom after we killed the Old God N'Zoth in Ny'alotha – the Waking City. Once it was learned just how much of an unsung hero she was, people all felt like fly shit for treating her like an outcast for so damn long. Oh – and I was instructed to inform you that Lord Theron says – and I quote – 'The gift basket is ready and I will be sure to bring it to the Wedding for your captain'."

I laughed, "I didn't think he'd get that ready so soon – Cullen won't need those items for 8 years, give or take!"

Cullen looked lost, "Why do I get a gift basket from… Lord Theron?"

"My step-father, Lor'themar Theron – regent lord of Quel'Thalas and acting ruler of the Sin'dorei – learned you punched Kayn Sunfury on my behalf the other night and… he commissioned some items for you as a gift. But that was yesterday – how did he get them so soon?

"There were no negative effects on the timelines," Inas grinned. I face-palmed, "That is a waste of time-bending…"

Cullens' eyes widened, "They bent time?"

"The bronze dragon-flight are the masters of time – they can go back and forward. They won't interfere unless they need too, though. Nozdormu – their leader – did claim blood rights against Asthan and Alstus' father for war crimes."

"What crimes could the man have committed – past what he did to sire the two men – that a time lord killed him?" Cullen asked.

"Any child of mine will be born a dragon – Duncan is a green dragon, though he has no magic. I am red. Asthan and Alstus were destined to be Keepers of Time. Their father carved the dragon souls from them – which can only be done before the child matures enough – to keep them from having any connection to me. Taking the dragon half from my sons was a war crime – as set by the Dragon Council. Lor'themar handed the man over as a peace offering – the Keepers of Time are a neutral authority so when they go after someone everyone bends over backwards and sideways to give the person up. In fact, most dragons are neutral authorities. Queen Alexstrasza – head of all dragons and queen of red especially – declared that the Dragons would not get involved in the petty faction wars. She will help fight when it is an enemy that threatens Azeroth, but otherwise, they are wonderfully non-interfering."

Cullen asked, "How… how old were they when…?"

"The man carved up his 1 year old sons – the dragon form comes at only a few months old, after all." Anduin looked somber as he said it.

Even Meredith looked sick – she wasn't under the influence of Red Lyrium yet after all. She said, "The man carved into babies? That is sick."

I nodded, "I… if Nozdormu had not gotten him, I would have. I left that foul fiend alive after what he did to me on the hope that he would care for them – that he would actually treasure those boys! Children are rare among the 'immortal' races – by design. I should have just killed him after I got out – the boys were already 50, after all. But that would have tipped my hand that they were mine – they would have been in danger."

"What exactly… happened?" Meredith asked – she looked confused and hesitant.

"I was a body slave for 200 years – the man was the only one who wasn't forsaken that had his way with me. That's actually how it was learned that forsaken aren't fertile – which makes sense as they're… you know… raised from the dead by the Val'kyr… you'd think they wouldn't experience lust either but that was proven incorrect. The man who fathered my sons was really worse than the forsaken – at least when he wasn't around, I was treated as a living being. I was fed and clothed and such. When I turned up pregnant, I was treated much better – to nurture… but there was a caveat – if my boys turned out to be freaks like me – showing mixed parentage of two elven races – they would be killed. I prayed each night that they would be… purer. And they were – so I thought they would be well cared for by that wretch. Apparently, I was wrong."

Meredith looked sick, "How did you survive… with your mind intact…?"

I snorted, "I didn't. By the end of it, I was… I wasn't eating or drinking – I was little more than a warm doll for them to play with. I never reacted or… when Inas rescued me, it took me 5 years to start healing – I didn't let men touch me at all unless it was Inas. I never looked anyone in the eye. I got physically ill if anyone spoke to me. It took 15 more years for me to heal enough to be anywhere close to 'normal' again. That's 20 years – had I not been immortal, I would have died broken. That was 4000 years ago, however – what you see now, is the result of time."

She actually had a slight look of guilt on her face. She had judged me – never knowing my story. Now she knew, and she felt like shit for how she treated me. The apologetic standpoint wouldn't last – once she got that idol, she'd be worse to deal with.

She didn't say anything, however – and I didn't expect her to do so. I looked at the two men of Azeroth and said, "I haven't slept in about 24 hours – can I go use the sleep?"

Anduin laughed and Inas snorted, "You are something else, little sister."

I stuck my tongue out, "I'm tired – and I don't drink coffee so piss off."

Cullen snorted. Meredith surprised me when she said, "Captain – take the Hero back to her home. I won't expect you back until day after tomorrow – I can handle things here until then."

"Ooh – I can… where was I going with that?" I said. Inas laughed, "Who knows with you? You might have been about to say you could bed him – but I sort of doubt it with how tired you are."

I shrugged and yawned, "Shoo, Inas – holding open the portal is draining."

He nodded and took Anduin with him.

I then opened a quick port to my place – Dibink, Altatra, Andan, Cullen and I all stepped through and I collapsed.

I came awake with Cullens' arms around my body – and I was naked. I hummed and snuggled in closer.

He chuckled, "I wasn't the one who stripped you…"

I yawned, "Taliwe?"

"Good guess," he replied wryly. I laughed, "Not a guess – she scent marked me."

He growled at that, "How do I…" he seemed to realize where his thoughts were going and stopped. I giggled, "Sex will usually do just fine. She is immature when she's comfortable so she probably licked her hand and rubbed it on my arm."

He snorted and kissed me and I moaned. When he pulled back I asked, "What time is it?"

"You've only been asleep for two hours, Tara."

"Is that all? Huh; it felt like longer."

"I admit – I am worried you didn't get enough sleep. From what I understand, when I woke you yesterday… that was the last time you slept?"

I shrugged, "It was worse during the Blight – there were nights when I was the only one on watch for a night. It was my choice, but… I have trouble sleeping, Cullen. Especially when I worry… I'm going to lose you soon."

He frowned, "You won't be getting rid of me so easily, Tara. If you being a mage isn't enough to deter me after all that happened, then I can think of nothing at the moment that would make me leave you…"

"I… I know you want to talk to Alistair about the 'big secret'… and…"

He kissed me, "If it is stressing you this much… I can stand to wait until the year is up."

"… What are your thoughts on the fact that both my sons are marrying one woman? Does… does it bother you?"

"Oh… um… well, I mean as long as all three of them are happy and… agreeable to it, I don't see how it is an issue. King Anduin said it was perfectly legal there…"

"And… I mean… it is legal here too."

"Right – apparently it is legal here too. I admit, I've never thought of something like that happening before – more than just two people in a marriage. I don't know that it's something I could… oh Maker… is that the big secret?" he groaned and I could see in his eyes that he was conflicted.

"Alistair… brought it up. I didn't outright agree, Cullen – it isn't something I've ever seen for myself as something I would do. Loyalty is my fatal flaw if you recall. I had… tried to push Alistair away. I asked him what would happen if things did work out with you but I still loved Alistair – or if things didn't work and I could stop loving you. He… I asked if I would lose you both I couldn't pick."

His face was blank – a mask – as he asked, "And what did his majesty say?"

"He said that I would never lose him. He told me that I am the mother of his son and the woman he grew to love so much that he was willing to hope I'd go back to him. He said that if that meant sharing me that he would try to put his own issues aside for me. I was stunned into silence and that was how he realized that I had been trying to sabotage the relationship – like I always have."

Cullen sat up and turned away, "Damn it…"

I flinched, "I was right, wasn't I? You're going to leave me now…"

"No… no; I'm sitting here… you didn't tell him yes?"

"Actually, I told him that it would be up to you because that kind of relationship would need the consent of all involved. I told him to at least give me a year with you before he suggested it because… I'm selfish and wanted what time I could have before you potentially left me for that…"

He took a deep breath and said, "Damn it."

My brow furrowed, "Are you leaving me?"

He scoffed, "I'm going through a bit of a crisis actually. My mother used to say that she could never make my father chose… That making someone chose was… I'm coming to the realization that King Alistair may love you more than I thought."

"But we're talking about us right now, Cullen."

"The point is – the King really is waiting in the shadows for me to make so much as a single misstep, Tara. Were those direct quotes from him?"

"More or less… There was a bit more emotion and stammering, but… yeah…"

"… Is it okay that I call him a bastard? A man like that makes it very hard to one up him to keep my woman."

I flushed and giggled, "He is a Bastard, Cullen; a cheesy, wonderful bastard. I do love him – you know that – but I love you too. And I am… I am trying so hard to figure things out. But I don't have all of the answers. I wish I did – because this has been tearing me up. I don't want to lose you but I've been positive that I would…"

Cullen finally turned back to look at me, "You said that it's my choice at this stage?"

I nodded hesitantly, "A relationship like that would need everyone involved to consent to it – otherwise it'd be cheating and I can't…"

"I… I will think on it – that's all I can promise at the moment. But I don't think that I can. I just… I don't know."

"You thinking about it… is far more than I had hoped for, Cullen. I thought that the minute you knew would be the last moment we were together."

He gave me a firm nod, "I can't promise to be okay with it… I can't promise that I would enter into that… it's just not… how I was raised."

I nodded, "That was what I thought."

He leaned in and kissed me, "So… for the whole year… he won't interfere?"

I gasped as he kissed his way to my neck, "H-he won't… mmmh…"

"Then I can be confident that you are mine for the year?"

His hands were trailing my body, "I-I am… all yours… at the moment…"

He growled, "Perfect."