2.

How was the Inquisitor still alive? His wounds were too grave to survive... Unless with blood magic... But no, for that to work Lavellan would have need a sacrifice and there was nobody else with them at the trebuchet.

Then how, dammit?!

These thoughts were running through Cullen's head as he and his men were making their way towards Storm Coast where the Seekers were had been last sighted. The missive had not been clear if Cassandra was amongst them, but Cullen knew that their numbers were few. Even fewer after several ambushes by his men. Captured Seekers proved to be useless due to the lyrium resistance, but Cullen managed to get some interesting information out of them. As to Pentaghast, she was nothing short of a mother hen to her charges and, almost certainly, would be nearby.

The horse whinnied and reared slightly, unwilling to carry its rider. The animals sensed the red lyrium and had been misbehaving since the templars left Therinfal Redoubt. Cullen had changed his steed twice already and it started to seriously irritate him. The General furiously dug his metallic spurs into horse's sides, making the animal rear yet again.

"Piece of shit that you are!" he hissed under his breath, as he felt familiar headache creeping up.

The pain had become a part of him since he had accepted that very first vial from Corypheus. The normal lyrium made its presence known only if the user had been deprived of it for too long. Red lyrium made sure once you started taking it, you could never go back. Cullen tried not to remedy his aches too often, for red lyrium fed on itself and would take over his body very quickly if he indulged. There were still many things that had to be done and Cullen had to stay alive long enough to see them through. Something warm dribbled down his lips and he licked it off.

Nosebleed, again.

That was the sign number two. The final sign manifested itself in many forms but was always accompanied by a mindnumbing migraine. Last time his eyes had started bleeding, scaring some of the more inexperienced recruits. Quietly cursing, Cullen took one glove off and rubbed the blood away. Once they arrived, he'll take the next draught. Should not be long now.

"General!"

One of the templars separated from the group and approached him, his horse being as difficult as Cullen's was.

"Sir, the lookouts report that Seekers had retreated to their hold."

"What is the bloody point of any lookouts if the Seekers can see them?!" Cullen's patience was hanging by a thread.

"They claim they had been as discreet as possible, sir."

So Cassandra knows they are coming. Cullen clenched his fists in aggravation. He, however, possessed the amount of soldiers Pentaghast did not have and if taking them by surprise was out of question, the numbers and brute force would do the trick. Cullen looked forward to it - he never liked the Seekers. No templar did - their abilities to use magic-cancelling skills without lyrium was a painful subject for the many within the Order. The feeble hope of being recruited right before the Vigil had soured many of his brothers and sisters. Once you tookhad taken your first lyrium potion, the dream was dead.

Since the Seekers were aware of their presence, Cullen had to set a camp and re-evaluate the strategy. He knew Cassandra would not come for him - her best bet was defence, it would be no different if they caught her by surprise. This is where battering ram came in handy. Frankly, nothing had changed. The Seekers being notified was a minor nuisance, the resistance would be harder but not by much. Cullen would still see the lookouts punished, for he despised incompetence.

With stiff fingers he rummaged in his belongings for some lyrium. His left shoulder, the one the Inquisitor had driven a dagger through, was the first to show the signs of crystal growth. Thankfully it was his shield - holding arm and the reduced mobility did not cause too much inconvenience. The pattern and the speed of growth suggested that in a few months the arm would completely disappear under the thick crystal layer. Cullen hated it, he hated to look at himself so much, it took great effort to learn how to shave without the mirror.

Ah, there it is.

He held the small vial with right hand and carefully unscrewed the bottle top with his teeth, letting the cork fall somewhere on the ground. The liquid burned his throat and Cullen sucked in the air through clenched teeth, trying to ease off the unpleasant feeling. Then came the warmth, that spread from his stomach and all over his body, making the General exhale happily, as the migraine subsided. He picked up a book and took a parchment out of it. The drawing depicted the birth of the Inquisition - himself, Cassandra, Leliana and Josephine standing besides the, back then, Herald of Andraste. One of the Chantry sisters had sketched it and Cullen had a hard time remembering how it ended up in his hands. It was almost offensive to look at their happy and proud faces. Leliana's face had been crossed out with red ink. Till the very end she had revealed nothing and Cullen, tired of her ridiculous games and running out of healthy skin he could mutilate, had finished the Inquisition's Spymaster off. He dipped his finger into the remains of the red lyrium and circled Cassandra's face.

"You are next."

"Lady Cassandra!", one of the Seekers ran in."The Red Templars are here! The are going to break through the gates!"

She turned around, dressed in full armor, a morningstar in her hand.

"Daniel, command the men to take their positions. We make a stand."

The Seeker nodded and retreated hastily, sounding the alarm. Cassandra picked up her shield and started into the fire for a moment, dancing flames reflecting in her tired eyes.

"Maker, give me strength..."

The gate gave in soon enough, rotten as everything here at Storm Coast. His templars had their orders - kill everyone but Cassandra, she was to be his trophy in all this. As Cullen crossed the courtyard, his eyes peeled for any enemy, he was satisfied to see his soldiers doing an excellent job at keeping the Seekers away from him. Pentaghast could have been anywhere but the experience indicated that just like him, she was not a fan of close quarters fights.

"I knew that eventually you would come for me."

Her voice sounded from behind, making Cullen turn around. Cassandra stood in the middle of the courtyard in her full Seeker armor. It did not escape his notice that she looked tired. All the better.

"Once I hoped for the same."

"Cullen..." Cassandra winced, pity in her eyes. He did not need his pity anymore. He never needed it.

"Oh but I was not the only one, you know," he grinned wickedly, staring right at her. "Sister Nightingale cried out your name more then once, as I burned that pretty face of hers."

Cassandra said nothing but her gaze had darkened and she curled her fist around the morningstar on her belt. Cullen, his mouth twitching in anger, slammed his shield into the ground and unsheathed his sword.

"I do not have all day, Cassandra!"

"Neither do I, Commander."

She sprung at him so fast, Cullen managed to cover with a shield just in a nick of time. He had forgotten how fast Seekers are. Their armor and weapons were designed to be durable but not to weight them down, unlike templars, who were compared to walking fortresses for a reason. Cassandra danced around him, landing hit after hit, making Cullen go on the defensive. Finally he had beckoned several of his templars towards them, making the Seeker temporarily distracted but long enough for him to throw the shield aside and tackle the damn woman. They fell and Cullen pressed her to the ground, yanking a small dagger out and aiming at her throat. Cassandra's fingernails dug into his neck and as he was ready to stab her, a jolt of indescribable pain shot through his body. Cullen screamed and tried to pull away but the woman latched onto him as a leech. It felt as if every fiber of his being was on fire.

"Snap out of it, you are being used! The Elder One had lied to you, Cullen! You and your templars are disposable to him! Whatever was done to you, it must..."

And then a shockwave shook the air around them. Cassandra used the Purge, magic-nullifying ability he was all too familiar with. Why would she... That moment Cullen could swear he felt something breaking inside him. His vision blurred and he grabbed Cassandra by the wrists, clenching them so hard they cracked, making her cry out in pain and release him.

"Get out of my head!" he screeched. Confused and weaponless, he got hold of the Seeker, his body still reeling from the pain and in one swift motion he twisted her neck. The pain stopped as abruptly as it started.

Next, came the darkness.