A/N: This story takes place before my primary Origins story, and introduces the major characters. I made this a separate story for a few reasons, the first of which being that I had already typed them up before I realized that I really didn't want them as a part of my main story. The reason I didn't want them in story is because these first few chapters disrupted the flow of the story I had in mind, and I thought that if they were a part of it I would have to change how I wanted it written. But, I already had started and put a descent amount of work into these first few chapters, so I just thought I'll upload them as a short story consisting of the character's origin stories.
Warning: This story is rated T for slightly violent scenes of action and language.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything of the Dragon Age universe. This was created purely for fans by a fan. Read and enjoy!
Gathering Heroes
Chapter Two: Escape
An apostate is a mage who is not part of the Circle of Magi. There are two types of apostates: hedge mages, who were never part of the Circle, and rogue mages, who have fled from the Circle. The Templar Order is charged with finding apostates and either capturing or killing them.
When Selene finally awoke, she was in her bunk in the apprentice quarters. With a groan, she lifted a hand to her throbbing temple, reaching for a bit of healing magic. However, magic requires concentration, and that is hard to come by when you just woke up and have a splitting headache. Her foolish attempt at healing caused a mental whiplash about as fun as getting punched in the face. Groaning in pain and irritation, she pulled herself into a sitting position and looked around.
There were no apprentices in the wide room, indicating it was well into the day. She can only remember bits and pieces of her time after completing her Harrowing. Flashes of Cullen standing over, sword at the ready, and the heart-warming expression of immense relief that spread across his face, before everything faded to black. Glimpses of her being carried down the halls of the tower, the faint hush of voices murmuring around her, but that was about it.
Rising slowly from her bunk, Selene maneuvered over towards the vanity area and gauged her appearance. Her blonde waves hung in a limp, tangled mess, and her face was looking very pale. There were dark, bruise-like bags under her eyes, which looked a little more washed out than their usual blue.
In short, she looked pretty terrible. She headed back towards her bunk, opening the chest at its end. Reaching inside, she grabbed her spare robe and a few personal items. Moving back to the vanity, she quickly changed her robe and settling down in the seat in front of the large mirror. She was in the middle of tying her hair back into a somewhat neat bun when a familiar voice floated into the room.
"Well, looks like Princess passed her Harrowing. I figured you were a goner. Heard that templar lover of yours was going to be the one to lop off your head." Gritting her teeth, she slowly turned to face the speaker, already wishing she hadn't bothered to wake up.
Talia Surana leaned against the entryway, looking as obnoxiously well-kept as she always did. Her face was as smoothly white as fresh snow, and her thick midnight hair was draped over one shoulder, not a single strand was out of place. Her golden mage robes were neat and clean, and she had sown them so that they looked more like a dress than a robe, and some filched earrings glittered out from one of her pointed ears.
Selene felt that familiar urge to punch Talia straight in the face. However, being the mature person she was, she simply sighed and tried to ignore her. She was put in the only pair of earrings she owned, a gift from Enchanter Wynne several years ago, when Talia appeared in the mirror.
A mocking smirk spread across Talia's face as those unnerving silver eyes took in Selene's appearance. "Well, looks like someone didn't sleep to well. I wouldn't have that problem, since I passed my Harrowing months ago, and I get a room all to myself." She grinned, relishing in the fact that she had something that Selene didn't.
"What do you want Talia?" She snapped, glaring at the other woman.
Talia sneered, tilting her head sideways. "No need for the attitude, Princess. I'm just trying to talk with my favorite mage." She stressed the word with her special mix of sarcasm and venom, face returning to a smirk. "So, how long did it take you? Mine was in record time. But don't worry, not everyone is a winner. It's nothing to be ashamed of."
Gathering her belongings, Selene rose to her feet, moving past the elf without a second glance. Brushing her off was always what irritated Talia the most. Sure enough, Selene heard footsteps following her out of the vanity area.
"Well, don't be secretive, Princess, how well did you do?" Selene, back still to Talia, threw her belongings into her trunk and slammed the lid. Today, Talia's incessant mocking and manipulations wouldn't be getting the best of her.
"As much as I would love to talk to you, Talia, I have more important things to do." She snapped, turning about and trying to head for the door. The elf maneuvered into her path, blocking her way to the door.
Talia sneered again, not willing to let the conversation drop. "What could possibly you have to do? You have a free day after passing your Harrowing. We can finally hang out together, friend." Talia's sneer was an odd one, as the normally ugly expression somehow didn't detract from her beauty. She had probably practiced it in the mirror for hours.
"Selene! Thank the Maker your awake. The First Enchanter wants to see you." Looking over Talia's shoulder, Selene saw her friend Jowan standing in the doorway, beaming at her. She smiled and began to more towards him, but Talia didn't appear to be finished yet.
"Oh Jowan!" She practically sang. "Don't forget about our little practice session later. You need to work on your fire spells." Selene whipped around, staring incredulously at Talia. "What? Jowan didn't tell you that we are practice buddies?" She smirked, and Selene turned to look at Jowan. There was no way he would be training with Talia, it couldn't be.
For one, Talia would never train with someone with less magical skill than her. That being said, as much as she cared for Jowan, he was so far below Talia on the magical scale it approached being pitiful. Talia was, along with Selene herself, one of the most skilled mages in the tower, outside of the Enchanters. For two, Jowan always expressed his hatred for Talia, and he wouldn't lie to her. She was his best friend after all.
At her incredulous look, Jowan glared at her and got unusually snippy. "What? Not everything in my life revolves around you!" Turning on his heel, Jowan stormed away from her, leaving her alone with Talia.
"Oops. Sorry about that one, Princess. I didn't mean to cause trouble. Have fun with the First Enchanter, friend." The elf breezed past her with a parting smirk, drifting away down the hall. Selene was left stunned. Jowan was prone to his fits, but she didn't understand why he would get so defensive. It was very out of character for him.
Shaking her head, she moved down the circular hall, heading up towards the First Enchanter's office.
Selene emerged from the bath feeling happy to be clean and refreshed. She had met with the First Enchanter, and he had given her new robes, her mage signet ring, and her first real staff. She had also met a stranger to the tower: a Grey Warden named Duncan, who she had escorted to the guest quarters. The two of them had discussed darkspawn and Blights, ancient things she had read about in texts in the library.
She had then moved down to the baths, and now was clean and refreshed. Dressed in her new and very golden robes, she left her hair hanging free and decided to head for the library. This talk of darkspawn had gotten her excited to refresh her knowledge of the forgotten horrors.
Reaching the library, she moved through the towering bookshelves, heading for the history section. Thumbing through the various volumes, she finally managed to find History of the Blights by Brother Jenetivi. She was hardly surprised at a book by Jenetivi. Half of this library was written by him; the guy was a genius.
Pulling that over to a nearby table, she opened it up to a passage on the first Blight. It spoke of the darkspawn finding the Old God Dumat, an ancient draconic deity of the Imperium, said to have taught blood magic to the first Archon.
It told of how he was corrupted by the darkspawn taint, and rose as the first Archdemon. Curious about what an Archdemon's role was specifically, she headed towards the section of the library centered on the various creatures of Thedas. Searching through several volumes, she finally found Darkspawn and Other Blight Creatures, again by Brother Genetivi.
Taking it back to the table with the other volume, she began thumbing through it, actually learning some new things. For starters, she learned that there were various kinds of darkspawn, each suited for different roles in combat. There were the genlocks and hurlocks, the basic foot soldiers. Then there were the two more specialized breeds, the shrieks and the ogres. Shrieks were stealthy assassins, sneaking behind enemy lines, while ogres where monstrous juggernauts, crashing straight through all in their path.
She also read that without an Archdemon, the darkspawn were disorganized and relatively ineffective, as they were incapable of complex thought and strategy. With an Archdemon, however, they were a near unstoppable army, fearless of death and wickedly intelligent, capable of cunning strategies with no regard for safety. These traits helped them tremendously in their lust to destroy everything around them.
She read for some time, before deciding to head up to the practice area and work on her ice spells. She replaced the tomes, and grabbed one on the spell forms she would be practicing. Informing the library Tranquil that she was checking it out, she heading out of the library and up the stairs.
The Circle's practice area was one of the tower's largest rooms, along with the Great Hall, the Templar's Chamber, and the top floor antechamber. It was a large, open area, almost an entire floor of its own, and one of the few rooms possessing multiple large windows. Of course they were only there so the mages could fire certain spells safely outside, and were heavily guarded.
Selene found it a bit foolish that it was considered necessary to post half a dozen templars by the windows. After all, they were on the tower's sixth floor, on the side of the tower facing straight out into the lake, and the only thing below them was sharp cliffs and freezing water.
Nevertheless, that was what the templars considered necessary, and so it that was how it would stay. Moving over to one of the nearby by podiums, she placed the book down and opened it up to the proper page. She was going to practice Cone of Cold, a more advanced version of a basic frost spell, formally called Winter's Grasp. There are four main, formally named ice spells, with Blizzard being the most powerful and advanced. However, those properly attuned to ice often can become very creative with their spells.
Unfortunately, fire is her primary element, so Selene will have to stick to the more formal spells. After Winter's Grasp, the next step was Cone of Cold, so she set to work.
Selene spent the next half an hour trying and failing to get the spell right. The cone either sprayed widely and ineffectively, or only went straight for a few minutes before she lost focus of it.
It was intensely frustrating. She had never, ever, had this much trouble generating a spell in her life. She had always been a quick learner, able to pick up almost any spell she wanted to. Ice, however, was the only things she ever had actual trouble with. She had little talent for entropy spells, but that was more likely because of a lack of interest than actual difficulty.
The Harrowing hadn't helped. In the Fade, magic came far more quickly and easily, and she was capable of far more advanced spells than she was capable of in the physical world. It was a taste of what, with proper study and practice, was in store for her. It had only made her want to learn faster, so that she could achieve that level of skill.
"You seem to be having a bit of trouble. It's Selene, if I recall correctly." Completely startled, Selene whipped around to see the Grey Warden, Duncan, leaning on a wall, watching her. Selene gave him a shrug.
"Yes, I am. Ice has never been my specialty. You're Duncan, right?" She asked, and the grizzled man nodded, giving her a small smile.
"You are correct. I know how hard it is to master a form that you just don't seem meant for." He said, using the same voice that her tutors did.
"Thank you! I swear, everyone who is non-magical that I have talked to always thinks it's just waving a hand then BAM! Magic happens. Granted, I haven't met a lot, but still, you're the first." She beamed at him. Duncan had just one himself a few points in her book. Cullen, however sweet he may be, always drove her up the wall with his ignorance to the more mechanical aspects of magic. "What brings you all the way up here?"
"Well, this seemed like the best place to see the mages practice their skills. As I said earlier, I am looking for recruits. Forgive me; I will leave you to your practice." He began to move away, but Selene spoke up, causing him to turn back.
"Oh, it's no problem. I was just about done anyway. I can't seem to get this spell right." At that statement, Duncan quirked one of his bushy brows at her.
"Well that's no reason to give up. You can't master anything without practice." He crossed his arms, giving her that same disappointed look that Irving used.
Smiling, Selene crossed her arms as well. "Well, Ser Warden, you don't know me that well. I'll have you know that I have learned almost every spell I know with hardly any practice. Some without any at all." That got his attention.
"Truly? Well, I apologize for the underestimation, my lady." Selene started, staring at him for several moments. My lady? She felt an uncomfortable feeling crawling its way up her spine, a barrage of memories flashing through her mind. Memories of servants brushing and braiding her hair, cooks placing her favorite meal in front of her, the templar that took her from her home-
NO!
She wouldn't allow those thoughts to resurface. Shoving the memories back to the far recesses of her mind, she brushed past Duncan, ignoring the thoughtful look he gave her. Reaching up to brush away a stray tear, she decided to head back down to the library. After all, a good story always reading always managed to cheer her up.
Selene rushed down the hall, twisting her hands in despair. She had been on her way to the library, when Jowan had appeared, telling her he needed to talk to her. He had looked so frightened, so she immediately listened, ignoring his little fit from earlier in the day. He had led her to the chapel, and introduced her to Lily.
It turned out that Lily had been the girl he had been raving about for almost a year. It also turned out that she was a Chantry initiate, and their romance was strictly forbidden. Now, Selene's relationship wasn't exactly looked upon with happiness, but it wasn't specifically forbidden. If they were discovered, they could get in enormous amounts of trouble.
They had said that Lily had seen had seen papers approving Jowan for the Right of Tranquility. Jowan was terrified, saying they were accusing him of blood magic, and the two had cooked up a plan to escape the tower, asking for Selene's help. She had been so stunned and torn that she had simply ran, putting her where she was now.
Jowan was her best friend in the world, and she would do anything for him, but to help him escape? Mages always got caught. Anders had escaped times beyond counting, and yet he was always brought back, to severe consequences. The past two times, Karl had begged her to try to and get Irving to make the templar's go easy, but even so, that wouldn't work forever.
He was always caught, as was every other mage she had seen escape. Jowan was far less skilled than Anders, and would never get far. The fact that he was courting a Chantry initiate, was suspected of blood magic, and had destroyed his phylactery, would spell immediate execution.
She had to do something, but she couldn't risk him getting hurt. What do I do? She was so caught up in her thoughts that she ran right into someone. Someone wearing very heavy, very hard metal armor.
Grunting in pain, she stumbled backwards, and raised a hand to her nose, which had taken the brunt of the impact. A familiar voice sounded, filled with worry and embarrassment. "Oh Maker, I'm sorry. Are you alright?" She looked up to see Cullen staring at her, eyes wide and concerned. A smile tugged at her lips, and for a moment she forgot about her inner turmoil.
"I'm fine Cullen, and don't apologize. I wasn't watching where I was going." She gave a little laugh at how red his face was, and how he seemed a few seconds from beginning to sweat heavily. It was completely adorable.
"O-oh, that's g-good." He stuttered out, twisting his hands anxiously, looking anywhere but at her face.
"Cullen, you don't have to be so nervous. I'm not going to bite you." She said with a chuckle. She loved how flustered he got around her, even after how long they had known each other.
His eyes widened. "Oh no, I d-don't think that, Selene. You're too wonderful to do that." When he realized what he said, his face somehow turned even redder, and Selene smothered a giggle.
"Why, thank you Cullen. How are you today?" She asked, raising a hand to brush a strand of hair out of her eyes. Cullen's eyes followed the movement, and he swallowed thickly.
"W-w-well, just g-guarding. S-same old s-s-same old." Her lips pulled into another grin. She could watch him stutter and stammer all day. One of his charms. Then, like a cloud rolling in, she remembered what had been causing her turmoil.
She had to get away, had to solve this problem with Jowan. "I'm sorry Cullen, but I have to go." She grimaced internally at the way her voice lowered in sadness, and the way Cullen picked up on it instantly.
"Selene, is something wrong?" He stepped in close, his big hazel eyes meeting hers with concern.
"No, no, of course not. Everything is alright." It was a lie, and a bad one at that. Cullen may stutter and stammer if she so much as smiled at him, but he was not fool.
He reached out, as if to grab her hand reassuringly, and then changed his mind, lowering his hand back to his side. "You can talk to me Selene." Oh, she knew that, but this was not something to she could discuss with him.
"See you around, Cullen." She moved past him, trying to forget the look of longing she saw on his face as she brushed past him. Maker, she was starting to make a habit of abruptly ending conversations.
She moved through the halls, and her feet led her to the library. Walking to a far corner, she sunk into one of the chairs, dropping her head into her hands. What was she going to do? Reaching up a hand, she pressed her fingers to her necklace, gently gripping the small amulet. Oh Mother, I don't know what to do...
Jowan wished to escape, and would probably do with or without her help. Even if he managed to get out of the tower, he would still be caught, if Anders was any evidence. Even now he was still locked in the dungeons, only a third of the way through his year in solitude. Jowan, however, was thought to be dabbling in blood magic. If he tried to escape, he would be put to death, or made Tranquil.
Selene sat in the library for almost half an hour, trying to figure out what to do. Finally, she made a decision. Rising from her seat, she headed out of the library and towards the stairs. She only hoped Jowan could forgive her for what she must do.
Selene, Jowan, and Lily moved slowly through the basement. They had waited until dinner, when almost everyone would be in the Great Hall, and had waited till the change of the guard before quietly slipping through the basement door. Selene, despite the measures she had taken, was still very nervous. What if there were dangerous things down here, and Jowan or Lily got hurt? Her inner troubles were quickly put to rest as the rounded a corner.
Leaning against a wall, standing right by the door they must go through, was Talia. Her lips were pulled into her trademark smirk, and she had changed into her apprentice robes, which were also sown into a more gown-like form. "Took you long enough Jowan." She quipped.
Selene whirled on Jowan, utterly confused. "What is she doing here?" Jowan's eyes widened, and he flicked his gaze back and forth from Selene to Talia nervously, mouth hanging open.
Talia's voice floated over her shoulder, completely smug. "Oh, little Jowie didn't tell you I was going to help? I thought you two were close."
Selene turned back to glare at her. "You don't help people, Talia, you use them. What is it you're getting out of helping them?" She snapped, but Talia only grinned at her.
"Oh, I wouldn't miss an opportunity to break some rules like this! Besides, I wouldn't want Jowie here to be made Tranquil. We're best buds." She smiled mockingly, fluttering her eyes. Spinning around, Selene gripped Jowan's arm and pulled him away from the snotty elf.
"Jowan, what is going on with you lately? First, you're apparently training with her, and now you're having her help you find your phylactery, and throughout all of this you didn't tell me anything! I tell you everything!" Jowan's nervous fear turned to anger, and he stood tall, utilizing his superior height to look down his nose at her.
"What makes you think you get to know everything there is to know about me? I didn't ask you to tell me all the things that you say. I know you were a noble, but not everybody cares about what's going on in your life, and not everything is your business!" Selene drew back as if he had slapped her across the face. Jowan's face fell, and he reached out a hand. "I'm sorry, Selene, I didn't mean-"
She pulled back, face hardening. "Let's just get this over with." What was the matter with him lately? Talia seemed to be rubbing off on him, because Jowan had never treated her like this. She moved past Talia, ignoring her smug smirk. She approached the door, but when she reached out a hand to open it, she noticed something odd.
The door had no handle.
Not even anything close to a handle. Talia snorted behind her. "Wow, Princess. Did you really think they would just leave it open for anyone?" She moved forward, pushing Selene aside.
"Initiate, come here." Talia called imperiously over her shoulder, causing Lily slowly to move forward. "Today would be wonderful." Talia snapped, turning to glare at her. Lily glanced back at Jowan, but he decided that was a wonderful time to be his normal, meek self. Selene couldn't help but simmer internally. Maker, with his new attitude, if she would have talked to Lily that, he would be throwing fire at her. But no, he's all buddy-buddy with her now. Her silent fury was calmed slightly by curiosity.
Lily, as if blessing someone, raised a hand and said something that Selene missed, and then Talia raised a hand crackling with arcane energy. The minute she touched the door, it flew open, revealing a long, wider hallway leading to another door, this one quite a bit larger. Had Jowan not made her angry, she might have asked how they did that, but as she was very angry, she simply moved forward silently.
This whole situation was driving her insane. Why was all this happening? Why was Jowan treating her so badly, why were the Templar's suspecting him, just why? Why couldn't things just be the way they were, with her and Jowan both practicing their magic, joking about Ander's latest escape attempts, and poking at her relationship with Cullen? Well, her somewhat relationship with Cullen. She wasn't sure if she was in love with him, and ready to run away together. However, she was sure that he made her smile, and that she was always happier when she was around him. What would he think of this? Would he be angry with her, turn away from her like it seemed Jowan was?
However, she had to put that out of her mind, for now they were faced with a door, one that actually had a handle. Unfortunately, it also had a massive lock to make sure it stayed closed. By Andraste, this was a headache in the making. At least she had managed to forget her fear and worry.
"Talia, did you get a rod of fire?" Jowan asked from the other side of the hall. Selene refused to look at him, instead looking at Talia.
The elf gave a slow, theatrical turn, one thin brow raised. In a mocking voice, she cooed "Did you really think we would need a rod of fire? Jowie, I'm hurt." With a smile, Talia whipped around, snapping her arm up and extending to fingers.
Nothing happened.
Talia looked down at her hand, and then extended her arm again, and again nothing happened. Talia stared at her hands, suddenly breathing very rapidly. Talia let out a sound dangerously close to a snarl and whipped around to glare at Lily. "What is going on? Why isn't my magic working?" She screeched, advancing on the initiate, hands curled into claws. Lily backpedaled, raising her hands appealingly.
"I don't know, I swear!" Jowan moved forward, also raising his hands to calm the seething elf. Selene ignored their next few words, instead staring at the door. When she reached out with her mind, she could still feel her mana, and she raised a hand. Electricity crackled across her fingers, and she let loose a stream of energy. The bolt of electricity flew through the air, and just as it got within three feet of the door, it fizzled out.
The argument a few feet away died down, and they all looked at Selene. "It's not Lily's fault, so you can leave her alone. This door obviously cancels out magic, and since we don't have a key, we'll have go through the other door and circle around." Talia quickly regained her composure, shooting a passing glare at Lily.
She turned and moved off down the hall to the right of the impassable door, reaching another large locked door. This time, however, her magic wasn't useless. Talia raised her hands, and summoned two balls of fire. It was her trademark fire, a brilliant blue white, unique within the tower. Any mage can change the color or intensity of their fire, but it requires extra concentration and a bit more energy. Talia, however, conjures bright blue flames of above-average heat and intensity automatically, with no extra concentration. It always irritated her how Talia effortlessly created flames that were, along with being Selene's favorite color, naturally hotter than her own fire.
With a small laugh, Talia snapped her hands forward, releasing a swirling blue fireball. The spell slammed into the door and quickly blew it off of its hinges, sending it crashing to the ground with a resounding bang. Talia turned back to smirk at them before moving through the now open door way.
They all moved forward, moving down the long stone halls. As they moved, they passed a pair of stone statues. Statues that quickly came to life. Selene was not proud of the undignified yelp that slipped out of her mouth, as the statues fell in on her and Talia.
Her elven rival reacted with admirable speed, ducking under one of the statues attacks with a mace. Backing up a few steps, she raised her hands and let out a blast of fire, blowing the statue backwards. Selene moved sideways, the statue's blow striking her shoulder. She let out a cry of pain, and lashed out with a wave of force.
The statues were, if she remembered correctly, objects known as Sentinels, statues infused with magic to act as guardians. The Sentinel rushed her again, swinging a stone sword for her head. She concentrated, erecting a barrier of energy between herself and the statue. Its sword slammed into her shield, and the Sentinel began bashing itself against the barrier again and again mindlessly.
She began to feel a strain, as each blow against the barrier had to be absorbed, requiring more energy. Focusing her mind, she pushed outward with the barrier, pushing the Sentinel backwards. While it tried to regain balance, she raised her hands and let out a blast of electricity. The statue fell backwards, crashing to the ground and smashing to pieces.
She looked around just as Talia finished off her statue another fire blast, hurling it into the wall and shattering it. With the small battle over, Selene summoned some healing magic, raising a hand to her aching shoulder, soothing the throbbing pain.
They moved through the halls, eliminating a few more Sentinels, until the hall split into two different paths, one left and one right. Talia spoke up then. "The Repository is that way," She gestured to the left. "But I have something I need down here." With a smile, she moved down the right hall. Selene narrowed her eyes in suspicion. She knew Talia had to have a reason for being down here.
Selene walked after Talia, as she moved down the hall, which twisted to the left up ahead. Finally, they came to a large, locked door, guarded on either side by a pair of sentinels. The statues went to move, but Talia lashed out with a pair of brilliant blue fireballs, which slammed into the statues and caused them to shatter in an explosion of dust and flames.
Her path unopposed, Talia continued forward, flinging the door open with a blast of force. Eyes narrowing, Selene stalked after her, into a dark corridor. Talia summoned a ball of fire in her palm, lighting up the area in an eerie sapphire glow. It turned out it wasn't a corridor, but a long room lined with cells. As the flames illuminated the room, a voice called out from one of the far cells.
"Oh joy, now I can finally finish counting how many rat dropping there are in here. Thank you, kind Ser." It was a familiar, sarcastic voice.
Talia gave a fake cry of pain. "Why Anders my dear, you don't sound happy to see me."
A pair of hands wrapped around the farthest cell, and Ander's voice echoed up to them. "Talia? What are you doing here?"
She moved forward, until she stood in front of his cell. "Anders, I thought you were smart." She cooed, tilting her head sideways. "What usually happens when a beautiful mage comes to her friend who's locked in a cell?"
"The one in the cell usually gets ravished again and again, if I remember correctly." Ander's said suggestively, no doubt giving Talia a flirtatious wink. Selene struggled not to gag at the two of them.
Talia chuckled, extending the hand holding the fire and gripping the cell's padlock. "We'll get to that later, my dear Anders. First, we have to break you out." The blue flames engulfed her hand and the lock, swirling denser and denser.
Finally, she snapped her arm back, and the heated metal gave way, breaking from the cell door as easily as ripping paper. Dropping the bright red padlock, she waved a hand, and the door flung open.
"That was impressive. How did you keep the metal from burning you?" Anders asked as he stepped free of his prison, and Talia gave nauseating giggle.
"Oh, a girl is nothing without her secrets." She said with a wink. As soon as she laid eyes on him, Selene's disgust vanished, and her hands flew to her mouth too late to muffle her gasp.
He was bone thin, and covered in lashes from whips and nasty bruises from what had to be gauntleted fists. His left eye was black and swollen shut, and his lip was split open and still leaking blood. Someone had been viciously beating him during his stay in the dungeons, and it had to have been a regular occasion, for the bruises and marks were of various ages, from very old to brand new.
At the sound of her gasp, Anders turned to face the rest of his company. "Selene? Talia, I can understand, but what in the name of the Maker are you doing down here?" His question went unanswered, as Selene was too stunned by his condition.
She has seen a few bruises on him before, after he was brought back to the tower, but she had assumed it was due to him trying to escape again. These were bruises of unnecessary beatings, ones that made no sense. Why would someone attack him like this?
"I...I..." She couldn't get the words out of her mouth.
Talia sneered over Ander's shoulder. "What's the matter Princess? Too delicate to handle a few bruises?"
"That is more than a few!" She cried, eyes bulging out of her head. "Anders, what happened to you?" The young man rolled his eyes, looking at Selene as if she didn't have a brain in her head.
"What do you think happened, Selene? The templars decided to have some fun after they locked me up. Nothing' better than beating people who can't fight back." He gestured at the manacles on his wrists. There were no chains on them, but if they were what Selene knew they had to be, there was no need for chains.
From the runes glimmering on the metal bands, they were shackles specially made to hold mages. The enchantments rendered a mage powerless, and since magic was practically a mage's only weapon, it gave the templars even more power over them. As long as those were around Ander's wrists, he couldn't even light a candle, meaning that he could be beaten within an inch of his life and do nothing to stop it.
Talia spoke up from beside Anders. "Well, our time for chit-chat is just about over. Time to move." With that, she gripped Anders arm and pulled him after her.
However, as soon as he reached Selene, she reached out and latched onto his arm, pulling him to a halt. "He needs healing, Talia, a blind man could see that." Talia turned and gave her a sneer.
"Well Princess, I don't know if you realized, but we broke into the templars prison cells, so we are a little crunched for time." She yanked Anders back towards her, but Selene yanked him back.
"I don't care. We aren't moving until he has been properly healed." She snapped, glaring hard at Talia. The two glared at each other, neither one willing to back down.
"As wonderful as it is having two beautiful girls fighting over me, I am feeling a little sore." Talia snapped her metallic gaze to Anders, and if looks could kill, he would have more problems than a few bruises. Pulling him towards her and twisting him around, Selene focused her mind, reaching into her reserves of mana. A warm blue glow surrounded her hands, and she raised her arms, gently pressing her fingers to his temples.
Slowly, the light spread across his face, then down his form. As the light moved down his body, the bruises slowly shrank and disappeared, his eyes returned to normal, and his split lip closed. When the healing magic reached the lashes from the whips, she had to focus, concentrating her energy on the injuries. After a few moments, the cuts slowly closed, the blood trying to leak from them rushing back into his skin.
Anders gasped in what could only be relief, and Selene released the spell. Glaring at Talia, she turned and started towards the door, but halted in her tracks.
Echoing down the hall were very familiar, armored footsteps. She was paralyzed, unable to breathe. Somehow, the thought of what they would do if they were caught had never occurred to her. The templar came to the entrance to the cells, and jumped at the sight of them, raising a hand for his sword.
"Hey, what are you doing in h-" He was cut off as Talia stepped around them, pressing a finger to her lips. Selene tensed as a strange magic entered the air, prickling at her skin and chilling her body. The templar's hand froze, and then fell limp as she approached.
"That's a good boy. Now, tell me why you came down here." The voice that came out of the elf was not quite Talia's. It was extremely similar, but at the same time different, smooth and rich, ringing with power. The moment the question finished passing through her lips, the templar's answer was formed.
"I came to punish the prisoner." She couldn't see Talia's reaction, but when she spoke again, there was the tiniest hint of anger.
"Punish him how?" Again, the templar responded immediately, and very oddly, speaking eerily similar to the Tranquil.
"I was going to give him a good beating, the proper punishment for a mage that doesn't follow the rules." Talia tensed, but her voice still maintained that silken quality. Selene walked forward to look Talia in the face, and once she saw it, she let out a gasp.
The elf's pupils were massive, threatening to completely envelop her eyes, and when Selene snapped her head back to look at the templar, she could see within the eye sockets of his helmet, and his pupils were similarly dilated. He still stood there stupidly as Talia spoke again, maintaining an intense stare.
"Well, you're going to turn around and return upstairs, and if anyone asks, you gave that prisoner exactly what he deserved." Her pupils quivered slightly, swelling a bit before shrinking back to normal. Well, back to the same massive size they had been before.
"I did?" The templar asked stupidly, and Talia nodded, speaking to him in an excited, cheery tone.
"Yes! You gave him such a beating he'll be unconscious for at least another day or so. Now, time to go." She smiled and gave the templar a nod. Turning on his heel, he slowly walked away, disappearing into the darkness of the halls. Selene whirled on Talia, staring incredulously at her.
"What was that? Have you been practicing blood magic?" Talia gave her a smirk, completely ignoring Selene's suspicious glare.
"Beings of the Fade have more to offer than blood magic and possession, my dear little Selene." The smug little elf stepped around her, snapping at the others and motioning them to follow her. That stuck up little brat was getting on her last nerve.
What kind of magic was that? Selene had never heard of mages controlling minds without the use of blood magic, and had never read about any other methods of mental control. She had read about demons being able to influence the minds of mortals, but how in the name of Andraste could Talia possess such a talent? Something was wrong with that mage, and it sent chills down her spine.
Her blood pressure climbed as Jowan immediately scurried after her like lost puppy. Well, what she assumed a lost puppy looked like. Soon enough, she was left standing there as the others followed her, only Anders glancing back and motioning for her to come along. Grinding her teeth, Selene followed them out of the dungeon and back to the fork in the hall.
After a few moments, the four of them finally passed through the doorway into the Repository. It was distractingly fascinating, filled to the brim with old books, sculptures, and other artifacts. She couldn't help but drift away from the others, letting her eyes move across the various items filling the room. Huge books, covered in a thick film of dust, strange trinkets that shimmered with an odd light, too many things to look at in the small time they had.
Eventually, she crossed paths with an unusual statue. Selene could feel a strange magic emanating the stone, a magic that was foreign and old. She stopped and looked closer at the sculpture. It was an androgynous figure, holding a long spear in one hand.
"Greetings." Selene let out a shriek, backpedaling away from the statue. She knew that much was possible with magic, but stone talking to her? That was shocking, even for her.
"By the Maker, you can speak?" She could hear the others coming up behind her, but she focused on the statue.
"I am the essence and spirit of Eleni Zenovia, once consort and advisor to Archon Valerius. Prophecy my crime, cursed to stone for foretelling the fall of my lord's house." Archon? Archons were the lords of the Imperium, head of the Imperial Senate and primary governing body of the nation. As a result, they were typically immensely powerful mages, usually trained magical arts forgotten or forbidden in the southern lands. Suddenly, a talking statue didn't seem so unreasonable.
'"Forever shall you stand on the threshold of my proud fortress," he said, "and tell your lies to all who pass..." But my lord found death at the hands of his enemies, and his once-proud fortress crumbled to dust, as I foretold." Her rather one-sided discussion with the statue was interrupted when Lily shouted over her shoulder.
"A Tevinter statue! Don't listen to it! The Tevinter lords dabbled in many forbidden arts! This is a wicked thing!" Selene ground her teeth in irritation. If the statue was really that dangerous, would it even be in the tower?
"I, for one, think it is fascinating. Imagine the power it would take to curse a woman to remain alive encased in stone, forever." Talia said, sounding as if she was about to start drooling.
Selene cocked her head, staring curiously at the statue, Eleni. "Do you think she is alive?" She wondered aloud, her voice tinged with sorrow at the thought of living in stone forever. The statue was quick to respond.
"Weep not for me, child. Stone they made me, and stone I am, eternal and unfeeling. And I shall endure 'till the Maker returns to light their fires once more." It said in that smooth female voice. Selene was not comforted.
"Do you need any help?" She asked, hoping that there was a way to help the poor woman.
"No help may be given, for this my doom and my destiny." The statue responded. Jowan scoffed from behind her.
"Ambiguous rubbish. It could mean anything. Look, I can do it too: The sun grows dark, but lo! Here comes the dawn!" The childish part of Selene couldn't help but think that Jowan was simply jealous that he didn't sound as interesting as the statue.
"Stop talking to it, please all of you." Lily protested from behind them, voice filled with terror.
Selene begrudgingly agreed. "Yes, we have much to do." They turned away from the statue of Eleni Zenovia, and returned to their task.
"Well, I think I know exactly what we need to do." Talia called after a few moments from the center of the room. She was standing behind another unusual Tevinter artifact, this one an animal shaped stone sculpture. She pointed towards a large bookcase opposite the artifact. "See where the mortar is rotting behind that bookcase? With this little guy we could blast right through it, no problem." She patted the statue's head, letting a few blue flames dance across her fingertips.
Nobody moved, and after drumming her fingers for several moments, Talia snapped her fingers imperiously in their direction. "Well come on, that bookcase isn't going to move itself!" Selene ground her teeth and walked towards the bookcase. Jowan appeared beside her, but she ignored him and simply focused on the task at hand. A few strong pushes later, the large object was moved, and the rotting wall exposed.
Talia rubbed her hands together with a grin, and then placed them on the head of the strange artifact. Fire swirled around her fingertips before erupting from the mouth of the statue, rushing forwards in a massive blast of blue flames. The spell slammed into the wall, blasting apart the stone and raising a smothering cloud of dust.
Once the cloud settled, Selene and Jowan slowly moved down a set of stairs that was on the other side. The minute they entered the phylactery chamber, several sentinels leapt into action, including one that was exceptionally large. Despite their numbers, the statues were quickly dispatched, and they moved up the stairwell to the area where the phylacteries rested on numerous shelves.
"That's my phylactery! We found it!" Jowan darted forward, snatching the vial off of the shelf it rested on and backing away, staring into its swirling red contents. "I can't believe this little vial is all that stands between me and freedom." His voice was practically reverent as he stared at the tiny vial. "So small, fragile, so easy to end its hold over me." He released it, letting the vial fall and smash on the stone floor, blood splashing out in a spray of red. "And I am free."
"Then can we move on? I want this done with." Selene said, an ache resting in her heart. She just wanted this done with, and Jowan made safe.
Lily swiftly agreed with her. "Yes, the sooner we are done with this place, the better."
Talia was already heading down the stairs and towards the door, the same one that they had been unable to pass through in the beginning. This time, however, it opened without difficulty. Anders, Jowan, and Lily hurried after her, but Selene couldn't help but drag her feet, her heart slowly breaking.
The five of them made their way out of the basement, maneuvering through the halls and climbing the stairs back to the main level of the tower. As they reached the main hall, Jowan turned back to them with a huge grin. "We did it! I can't believe it!" Still grinning, he turned to face Talia. "Are we ready to go now?" Talia opened her mouth to respond, but she was cut off.
"So what you said was true, Irving." With that all too familiar clanking of metal filling the room, Knight Commander Gregoir, the First Enchanter, and a half dozen templars advanced on them.
"No!" Talia hissed, retreating away from them. Lily reached out and clutched Jowan's hand, gripping it so hard her knuckles whitened, while Anders gave the Knight Commander his usual cheeky smirk.
"G-Gregoir..." Lily stammered, face turning a deathly white.
"An initiate, conspiring with a blood mage. I am disappointed, Lily." He advanced on the pair of them, looking intensely at Lily. "She seems shocked, but fully in control of her own mind. Not a thrall of the blood mage, then." He turned away, returning to the others, still speaking as though they weren't present. "You were right Irving. The initiate has betrayed us. The Chantry will not let this go unpunished.
"And it would appear that Surana has proven herself far more insidious than we had thought." He said, staring coldly at Talia. "Conspiring to help a blood mage escape, and freeing one of our prisoners. Perhaps she is a blood mage as well." The First Enchanter nodded sadly. Gregoir then turned his glare on Selene, stabbing a finger in her direction. "And this one! Newly a mage and already flaunting the rules of the Circle." He snapped, glaring daggers at her.
Irving raised his hand in an attempt to placate Gregoir. "It is all right, Gregoir. She was operating under my orders."
There it was. Selene felt as if the floor was dropping out from under her as Jowan turned back to stare incredulously at her. "You told him? How could you?" He roared, face a mask of betrayal. Selene felt the tears well within her eyes at the sight of his expression.
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry Jowan, but I had to! Mages always get caught! I was trying to protect you!" She wailed, desperate to make him see. He scoffed at her, his face hardening with hatred.
"Don't even speak to me!" He bellowed, wheeling about to face Gregoir. "And you! You don't care about us mages; you just bow the Chantry's every whim!" Jowan seemed ready to explode. Gregoir raised his hands, swiftly shutting down anything Jowan was about to say.
"Enough! As Knight Commander of the templars assembled here, I sentence this blood mage to death. And the initiate-" Selene lurched forward, cutting him off.
"NO!" She screamed, whirling on the First Enchanter. "You told me Jowan would be safe if I helped you! You swore it!" It was impossible. Jowan couldn't' be executed. She had gone to Irving, hoping that her warning him of Jowan's plan would spare Jowan from harm, and the First Enchanter had assured that she was correct. He wouldn't, couldn't, have lied to her, couldn't have used her to ensure that her best friend was put to death.
"I am sorry child. I didn't know what you would do if you believed that Jowan's life was truly in danger." The First Enchanter croaked apologetically. Selene stared unblinkingly at him, her mind not fully comprehending his words. Jowan was intended to die all along, and she had done nothing but ensure it. In a misguided attempt at protecting him, she had practically executed Jowan herself.
"Men, seize them all. The blood mage will die, and the other three shall be sent to Aeonar." Gregoir commanded his templars, who all began to move forward.
Lily backed away from them, eyes wide with terror. "Aeonar! The... the mage's prison. No... Please no. Not there!" Jowan threw himself in front of her, shouting at the templars.
"No, I won't let you touch her!" Everything happened so fast. Selene saw the glint of light flashing across something sharp, and then crimson erupted around Jowan. Blood and magic swirled around him, a dark, sinister energy filling the air. Gregoir shouted something, but Selene paid him no mind.
She watched in horror as Jowan let loose a powerful spell, one that slammed the First Enchanter and all the templars against the ground as if it were nothing. The second they were down, Talia and Anders were rushing past them, fleeing the tower. Jowan and Lily were talking, but Lily backed away from him, gesturing for him to get away. Jowan turned tail and fled, not giving Selene a pacing glance. Her mind was a fog, filled with the insurmountable shock of the last few moments, and the one fact that shattered her heart.
Jowan was a blood mage.
The thought ran through her head again and again, and the moment he slashed his palm flashing behind her eyes in an endless, repeating loop. He had lied to her, made her believe that he was the victim. He had turned to the forbidden arts, and when the consequences came, he tricked everyone around him. She had torn her heart in two to save him, but he had lied to her all along.
"He lied to me...they all lied to me...and I gave them what they wanted." She whispered to herself, arms clutching at her shoulders as she struggled to come to terms with the knowledge before her. Two of the people she trusted most in the world lied to her and used her for their own means, and she had gone right along with it.
She felt numb as the others rose from the ground, and barely noticed that Gregoir was shouting. She managed to shake herself from her stupor when she saw him advancing on Lily, shouting that she had assisted in helping a blood mage escape.
Selene moved forward, maneuvering herself between the two of them. "Stop, she didn't know he was a blood mage!" Gregoir snapped his gaze to her, eyes burning with rage.
"It does not matter if she knew he was a blood mage or not, she willingly betrayed her vows to the Maker, and helped a mage escape justice! She shall be punished." He roared, clearly unwilling to spare her. Selene opened her mouth to defend her, but Lily spoke up from behind her.
"I can speak for myself, Selene." The statement came out cold, and Lily turned her attention back to Gregoir. "I... I was wrong. I was an accomplice to a blood mage. I am willing to face whatever punishment you deem necessary, Knight Commander. Even...even Aeonar." Gregoir scoffed, as if saying such meant anything at all.
"Ger her out of my sight." He snapped, waving her away. A pair of templars moved forward, gripping her arms and pulling down into the basement and most likely the dungeon. The Knight Commander fixed his beady eyes on her, mouth twisting into a scowl.
"And this one. What are we going to do with you?" He gave her an accusing glare, and a bit of fear flared within her. Was she to be sent to Aeonar as well?
The First Enchanter moved forward, raising his hands. "As I said, Gregoir, she was operating under my orders." Selene glowered at him. Irving had used her, betrayed her just like Jowan had. He had used her as a pawn to ensure they all were caught red-handed, and she let herself believe him, believe that he would help her best friend. The best friend that had also used her and stabbed her in the back.
They argued for several moments, the Templars surrounding them shifting nervously, at a loss of whether to grab her or not. They argued until Duncan entered the room, calmly striding up to the pair of them. "Gentlemen, please calm yourselves. I have another solution." The pair of them ceased their argument and turned to face him. "I would like to invoke the Right of Conscription on this mage, and induct her into the Grey Wardens."
Gregoir of course was aghast, and vehemently refused, but in the end there was nothing he could do. Selene was now a Grey Warden recruit, and would be leaving the tower forever.
A/N: And that was chapter two! I want to thank you again for reading this, it really does mean a lot to me. This chapter was really long, I know, but that's just how it ended up when I typed it, and I hope my efforts payed off and were well written. I hope you enjoyed it if you did read it, and if you have any suggestions let me know. Chapter three will be up soon.