They followed the directions to the abandoned warehouse that was supposed to contain the phylacteries. Elaine allowed Nathaniel to go in first, checking for traps or anything suspicious. What turned out to actually be suspicious was the fact that there were no guards or Templars posted anywhere.
Elaine looked at Anders nervously as they entered the warehouse. The first room seemed like any ordinary storage facility; boxes and crates lined the floors and walls. What caused Elaine to be alarmed was the lack of dust in what should be a rarely visited location. As if this room was set up somehow, made to look like a warehouse, when in fact is was not. It had to be the work of the Templars, she was sure.
"No guards," Anders noticed, as well. "Maybe they don't want to draw attention to the cache? Could we be that lucky?"
As they walked further into the warehouse toward the room Namaya had indicated, the trap was sprung. Several well-armed Templars came out of hiding from behind the tall crates that lined the walls. Rylock, the Templar who had accompanied the Queen on her visit to Vigil's Keep, had indeed set a trap. "And here I almost believed the infamous Anders wouldn't take the bait."
Anders grumbled, "Ah yes, I suppose I should have known it would be you."
Rylock addressed Elaine. "You made a poor choice in a companion, Commander. Anders will never submit, not to us and not to you."
"So this was a lure then?" Elaine asked. "Nothing more?"
Rylock laughed. "Oh, the phylacteries were here once. I knew Anders would never be able to resist."
Anders smiled at Rylock. "Oh, the way you flatter me!"
But she wasn't moved. She addressed Elaine again. "I'll make sure that this murderer is never a bother to anyone again."
Anders became annoyed. "What? No, you can't arrest me! Queen Anora allowed my conscription!"
Rylock didn't back down. "The Chantry's authority supersedes the crown in this matter. You cannot hide within the Grey Wardens ranks."
Elaine moved closer to Rylock. "No, you can not have him. And you're playing a dangerous game interfering with the politics of the Grey Wardens and the Queen of Ferelden."
"Hardly surprising you'd defend him," Rylock sneered. "The Grey Wardens have ever been a haven for criminals and maleficar." She addressed Anders once more. "I do not know how you inspired such loyalty Anders, but it will avail you naught. You come with us. Now!"
"Looks like we're in for a battle," Nathaniel stated, readying his bow.
Justice took on several Templars at once, waving his sword around and smashing whatever crossed his path. Nathaniel remained at a distance, trying to find a good target on the Templars, as their heavy plate mail made it difficult for the arrows to penetrate. Anders and Elaine cast multiple spells at their attackers, most of which were dispelled by others they couldn't see. Metal clashed with metal, energy and magic filled the air, and for several minutes there was only chaos and commotion.
As Elaine prepared a spell to freeze several of the Templars in place, she was grabbed by the arm and slammed into the hard wall. Her attacker immediately hit her with a wave of energy, which incapacitated her magic. His gloved hand slammed over the bottom of her face, covering her mouth.
"My my, doesn't this feel familiar," he said, sniffing her hair like some rabid animal.
Elaine froze at the sound of that voice in her ear. She knew that sneering, condescending tone, knew the scent of that leather glove under her nose, and she felt her knees go weak beneath her. All sounds faded around her as in her mind, she was suddenly back in the Circle, only thirteen years old.
Ser Alrik walked behind her as he escorted her to the stockroom. It was her birthday, and Alrik informed her that the Templars had all pitched in and bought her a surprise gift. Elaine was excited; she had never really celebrated her birthday since coming to the Circle, but Alrik promised it was going to be a day she would never forget.
When they reached their destination, Elaine saw there was another mage seated in a chair in the middle of the room. Elaine looked at the woman curiously, as Alrik quietly shut the door behind them. He locked the latch at the top of the door, close to the ceiling; easy for him to reach, but impossible for Elaine.
Alrik walked over to the seated mage, who hadn't moved or said a word since they'd entered.
"Have you two met?" he asked Elaine.
Elaine shook her head, wondering what this woman had to do with her birthday present.
"This, my dear, is your future. My gift to you, a glimpse at life to come." Alrik seemed pleased, as if this was something she should be happy about.
The woman looked up at Elaine with a dead stare. There was no life in her eyes, no emotion on her face.
"She is what we call Tranquil," Alrik continued. "Cut off from the Fade and the source of her magic."
Elaine began to question why she was really brought here, and fear crept up her spine in shivering waves. "I...I don't understand..." she said quietly.
"Watch, I'll show you," Alrik said almost pleasantly.
With a swift motion, he punched the tranquil mage across the face, causing blood to spew from her mouth. Alrik smiled at Elaine, who jumped back in surprise.
"I can do that to her all day, and she doesn't care. She can't care. I've no doubt it's painful, but she won't hold a grudge." He was still smiling, but it did not reach his eyes - hungry, calculating eyes, as cold as a winter's frost.
He walked toward Elaine and she backed away from him. "Now you, on the other hand, I will enjoy the terror in your eyes as I give you your gift."
Elaine tried to run from him, but he was stronger and much more powerful. As he threw her against the wall, Elaine cried out to the tranquil mage for help, but Alrik put his hand over her mouth and silenced her. The tranquil mage said and did nothing, just looked off into the distance as Elaine struggled to get free.
"Yes, fight me, it's so much better when you fight," he said with an evil grin as he twisted her arm back behind her. She screamed from the pain his hand caused as he viciously twisted it, and nearly broke her arm. Alrik snapped his fingers at the tranquil mage, who immediately came over to him.
"Secure this one," he ordered the mage, and she complied, grabbing Elaine's arms and holding them tightly behind her.
He kept a hand over Elaine's mouth as he reached down and lifted her robes until they were bunched at her waist. Next, he removed her undergarments with a swift tug, ripping the fabric away from her skin. Still gloved, his hand snaked between her legs and began to touch her.
"You were brought here young, were you not?" he asked her as he fondled her most private place.
She nodded, tears falling freely as she looked away, trying to move but unable to get free of the tranquil's grasp.
"I bet you've never been touched here, have you?" he asked as he glared at her, forcing her to look at him. "You're a ripe little thing then aren't you?" With no warning, he was suddenly penetrating her with a gloved finger.
She cried out again beneath his hand, and he laughed. "The tranquil are no fun anymore to play with, they take whatever I give them without a sound. I prefer a little struggle," he told her.
He withdrew one finger and shoved in two, hard, and Elaine cried out again. He forced the two fingers in and out of her, stretching her, the raw feel of his leather gloves creating a painful friction. She tried to move and couldn't, each movement met by the strength of the woman holding her, and Alrik pressed against her.
He removed his hand from between her legs and brought it up under her robe to her breasts. He pinched each nipple, hard, and she screamed again. Her tears continued to stream down her face, and now she was nearly hysterical. Alrik's smile widened as he watched her trying to resist him, and he immediately began removing his pants with his free hand.
Elaine could do nothing, being held by the force of both Templar and mage, as she felt Alrik press himself against her now, flesh to her flesh. She tried to shake her head, eyes pleading for him to stop, but Alrik motioned to the tranquil mage and Elaine was thrown to the floor. The mage pinned her arms down as Alrik got on top of Elaine and again covered her mouth with his hand. He forced her legs open with his knee, and with a rapid thrust, he entered her, tearing her, breaking her, as he painfully pushed upwards inside her.
More powerful thrusts, more soft muffled cries, and he whispered in her ear, "You are the tightest I've had in a long time." Grunts and groans, sweat that dripped onto her face, and finally his body jolted forward as he emptied himself into her. She felt the warm liquid within her and on her inner thigh as he pulled out, and then he wiped his spent cock on the inside of her robes.
He released his hold on her and Elaine made no sound, trying to steady herself on the ground again, as he and the tranquil pulled her back to her feet.
"You will of course tell no one of this," Alrik said removing his gloves. "I will leave first, the tranquil will see you to a bath shortly after. Return to your room and forget this happened. Say anything to anyone, and I won't be so nice next time, or alone." He kissed her on the cheek before he left. "Oh, and Happy Birthday."
She'd lost all thought of her magic or combat skills as Alrik pressed up against her. The battle around her came back into view; Templars falling to the ground, the sight of her companions triumph.
"Elaine!" she heard Anders exclaim, snapping her out of her flashback.
Anders sent a jolt of electricity toward the Templar, who stumbled off Elaine and into the nearby wall. Alrik surveyed the damage quickly, and after seeing his companions dead, began to retreat. He glared at Anders. "Another day mage," he spat as he turned and ran out of the warehouse. Anders moved toward Elaine, immediately looking for any sign of injury. "Are you hurt?" he asked as he searched her eyes.
She shook her head and looked around at the dead Templars. She knelt down next to Rylock to see if she was still alive, but the Templar was dead.
Anders stood behind her. "Hmm, I wonder if Namaya knew about this? I guess it doesn't really matter." Elaine checked the rest of the bodies to discover they had all perished in the fight. "Thank you," Anders said to her. "You stood by me, and I appreciate that."
She shrugged. "I never liked Templars much. But I wish we'd killed Alrik before he fled."
Anders looked at her curiously. "Alrik? Wasn't he at the Circle?"
She nodded but said nothing.
"What was that between you anyway?" Anders pressed.
Elaine looked away. "It doesn't matter. Let's get out of here in case he called for backup."
She remained quiet on the way back to the Keep, trying to ignore the conversation between Justice and Anders. Justice was upset about what had taken place with the Templars, and didn't understand why Anders had such a casual attitude about it.
"I understand that you struggle against your oppression, mage," Justice began.
Anders laughed. "I avoid my oppression, that's not quite the same thing is it."
Justice wasn't the joking sort and pressed on. "Why do you not strike a blow against your oppressors, ensure they can do this to no one else?"
In his ever sarcastic way, Anders replied, "because it sounds difficult?"
Justice remained defiant. "Apathy is a weakness."
"So is death," Anders stated. "I'm just sayin'."
Justice kept at him. "I believe that you have a responsibility to your fellow mages. You have seen oppression and you are now free. You must act to free those that remain oppressed."
"Or I could mind my business in case the Chantry comes knocking. Did you not just endure the same battle I did? I'm hardly free, and I doubt Rylock will be the last to try and recapture me."
Justice frowned, "But this is not right, you have an obligation!"
Anders shrugged, "Yes, well, welcome to the world, Spirit. I don't know how things work in the Fade, but here? You keep your head down and your rebellions to yourself."
"Someone should do something," Justice muttered, clearly not understanding why one man couldn't change the world.
Elaine had never heard Justice speak so much on one subject, and his perspective on the mages and Templars made her curious. What would happen if the mages fought back, she wondered.
He had spent over an hour trying to find her. He checked the entire Keep: the kitchen, each home and shed on the grounds, the roof, the larder, the armory, her room, and the throne room. The last place he expected to find her was in the dungeons, but there she was, sitting at the guards desk with a stack of paper and discarded trash around her.
"Are you hiding from me?" Anders said as he sat down at the chair next to the guard's desk.
Elaine smiled at him. "No, not you in particular, just hiding in general." She waved at the desk of discarded, crumpled sheets of paper. "I've been trying to write to Alistair to fill him in on what happened, but how does one write 'I may have started a war with the Templars and the Chantry' in code?"
Anders laughed. "You Wardens should come up with a code for just this very reason. Why not ask him to come here and then tell him in person?"
Elaine sighed in frustration. "I don't know, that may fall into the whole awkward 'ex lover' thing we've already dealt with today."
"Well there's your answer. We've already dealt with it. And it's only fair I have to deal with one of your exes. Besides, I'm curious what he looks like."
Elaine giggled. "His looks? I could draw you a picture, save your curiosity and my uneasiness at having to be in the same room as him again."
"That bad of a break up eh?"
Elaine ignored the question, scribbling some more on the page in front of her. Finally she responded with, "if circumstances were different, it would've worked between us."
Anders set his elbows on the desk and rested his face in his hands. "Do tell," he asked curiously.
She shook her head. "Let's just say we weren't compatible in the bedroom."
Anders looked surprised. "Really? How is that possible? You are an amazing lover," he purred.
Another day she may have been flattered, but after seeing Alrik today, images continued to flash in her mind of her past. "Like I told Alistair, I'm damaged Anders. My needs and desires aren't normal, certainly aren't natural. He couldn't give me what I wanted because it's not a normal thing to want."
Anders sat back in his chair. "She says to the man she's currently sleeping with."
She sighed, not wanting to get into this discussion with him. "You asked, I told you, can't we leave it at that?"
"You tell me the amazing sex we have isn't normal or natural and I'm supposed to leave it alone?"
"Anders, please…" she begged for the conversation to end, but she could see he was hurt by what she had said.
He stood up to leave, and she stood as well, grabbing his arm to stop him. "Don't go," she pleaded as he removed her hand from his arm.
"Finish your letter," he said as he walked out of the dungeon.
Elaine sat back down, took in a deep breath, and let the tears fall as they smeared the ink on the pages beneath her.