BioWare owns all but what I made up. : )
So Kai and Zev decided to have a little distraction before they find themselves in the Deep Roads once again. And Anders has some revealing, or what he thinks is revealing news. For those who haven't given up on me, I hope you enjoy chapter 99, yep 99! And I hope you'll continue to come along with me for the journey. No I haven't quit writing Soulmates, quite the opposite. In fact I hope to celebrate with chapter 100 and poor Anders in his armor.
I apologize profusely for being so late in posting. Real life threw some curve balls my way. And I hope you have not all given up on me. I am still writing and I hope you'll still find my writing worth reading. I do have the best fans, and I do feel I have let you down. I hope you can forgive me. As I have always said, I am ever so grateful to have such a wonderful crowd following me. THANK YOU!
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Again, all my love to my fans. Sorry if I disappointed you.
Blessings!
As good as his word, Brother Burkel arranged for vestments for Wynne. A pair of dwarves, who turned out to be lay sisters, arrived the following day with the required robes into which they placed the elder mage. A flurry of pins later, and the clothing was whisked away to have the adjustments made before the final fitting.
The templar armor would take longer, so Kai and her companions spent their days in their rooms, in Tapsters, or even topside in the market. Kai figured they ought to enjoy time in the sun and air while the getting was good. Who knew how long they would be in the Deep Roads.
It was one such day that Kai and Zev carried a blanket and lunch wrapped in cloth outside of the city. They made their way to the large boulder that they had used to clean up once during the Blight, and that Kai used as a clandestine meeting place for her and Wynne.
Zev shook out the blanket and laid it out beneath the overhang of the rock. Kai sat down, unwrapping the bundle she carried while taking a deep and welcome breath of clean mountain air. She handed Zev the wine bottle for him to open while she placed food and wooden mugs on the blanket. He poured the ruby colored wine for them as Kai used a dagger to slice bread, cheese, and apples into pieces. Zevran popped a grape into his mouth before taking the food Kai handed him. They ate and sipped wine in comfortable silence.
She found herself watching the clouds and the way the wind blew through the branches of the trees, and the birds picking through the detritus on the forest floor, as if memorizing them. The Deep Roads would have no clouds, no birds, and very little light. There would be air from the giant vents, but there would be no wind. Maker, how she hated the Deep Roads!
Her thoughts must have registered on her face, as she felt Zev's fingers twine with her own before giving them a squeeze. "My dear Kaidana, it does not do to dwell on the unpleasantness of the future while immersed in the distraction from that future, no?"
Kai gave him a chagrined look while returning the pressure to his fingers before wrinkling her nose and sticking out her tongue at him. This only caused him to throw back his head and laugh before he turned to her and leaned in, the fingers of his other hand kneading her neck as his lips touched hers lightly at first and deepening the contact until her heart was racing and her breath came short.
"I think, mi amada, I can find something else to distract you with, no?" Zev's amber eyes sparkled as he gave her a cheeky grin. This time, as his lips met hers, his hand trailed down her neck to untie the thongs in the front of her tunic, slipping it off of one shoulder. She barely had time to imagine a lamppost in snow before his mouth left hers to trail kisses across her cheek to her earlobe. His teeth nibbled the soft flesh there, making her groan at the pleasurable sensations his mouth caused.
His hand trailed down her throat and across her shoulder before they found their way up her tunic, skimming the edges of the band across her breasts before artfully undoing the ties and removing it in one fluid motion. It made her want to giggle, knowing that he was that good due to a lot of practice. Kai began to make a comment along those lines, but her breath was lost in a gasp as his mouth gently bit her throat while his fingers teased along her front.
Her own hands roamed beneath his shirt, skimming muscled shoulders and running them across his chest, causing him to rumble in deep in his throat and pull her shirt over her head. He licked and nipped his way down to the valley between her breasts, trailing kisses between each hardened peak, causing her to arch under him while hands worked feverishly to get his shirt off.
He laughed a low laugh and stopped long enough to oblige her. His shirt lay on the ground next to her abandoned clothing items in short order, as did the rest of their wardrobes, before lowering his mouth to tease one breast, and then the other, before seeking out her lips again.
He broke off briefly to cup her face with his hands, his fingers tracing the delicate curve of her cheekbone as his amber eyes gazed into her blue ones. She opened and he filled. They took pleasure in each other, until the world stopped as their bodies plunged relentlessly onwards, pushing them both towards the precipice.
With a triumphant cry of his name, she fell over the edge as she wrapped her legs around him and took him with her. She felt his body's shudders match her own as he nuzzled her neck, whispering her name.
He rolled to the side, pulling her to him, and resting her head on his chest. Kai realized she was dozing off when she startled slightly as she felt Zevran shiver under her. She couldn't help but take the opportunity to tease him. "What, Zev, shivering on a fine warm day like this? Ah, mighty assassin and former Crow, laid low by a balmy summer's day."
Laughter burst from her lips as his fingers tickled her ribs. "What passes for summer in Ferelden would be considered the first warm days after winter in Antiva. How you can claim this is warm I will never know, my dear Kaidana."
He rolled over, pinning her beneath him, his amber eyes sparkling with mischief and lust. "But I can think of ways to stay warm, no?" His nose nuzzled hers before his lips were plastered to hers as his hands cupped her face.
She could feel his arousal pressing into her belly. She didn't know if Zev felt warmer, but she knew she did. She was picturing a lamppost in snow once more and enjoying the thought of round two when she heard a plaintive, yet loud cough from above them on the rock overhang, followed by a distressed sounding "hello" and a loud "woof."
Kai jumped and practically threw Zev down the mountain to sit up, putting her back to the rock face, curling her knees to her chest while wrapping her arms around them. Zevran, never one to be embarrassed by a lack of clothing, or anything else for that matter, simply picked himself up much the way a cat would after being booted across a floor by accident, while throwing back his head and laughing, slowly gathering their clothing and handing Kai hers with a smirk.
She could feel the the heat rising in her face as she wrinkled her nose and stuck out her tongue at him. Kai fumbled to put on her clothing as fast as she could. Zevran took a more leisurely approach and managed leggings before calling for their company to join them.
A gleeful "woof" could be heard and Kai watched Argus race around the rock to barrel into her as she sat on the blanket to pull her boots back on. She found herself flat on her back while receiving doggy kisses. As always, Argus's exuberant affections made her giggle and laugh as she pretended to fend them off while tickling the mabari's ribs.
"So, does she giggle like that for you, too?" Kai shot a look to her left to see the edge of Anders' booted feet. She tilted her head up, her line of vision following upwards to see pants tucked into the boots and a cotton shirt covering his muscular torso—for a mage, Anders was in very good shape—with the fuzzy marmalade striped head of Ser Pounce-A-Lot peeking out from under the laces. Part of Kai wanted to giggle, because broad muscles with a soft little kitten sitting nestled there would be sure to make most ladies swoon. It must be all the running the man did from the Circle that kept him so fit.
He told them he preferred normal clothes instead of the robes the Circle made mages wear. Except, he told Oghren when the dwarf teased the mage about wearing a man dress, when a mage might need to perform in a quick and quiet tryst—say in the Circle library under the nose of the templars—one could be done, skirt down with none the wiser. Kai still blushed furiously thinking of that conversation.
Apparently, Anders had his own set of 'civilian' clothing he used to evade capture, pointing out that the robe he wore when they met him was one the templars forced him wear while taking him back to the tower. So, he was more than happy to dress as if the staff he wore was nothing more than a walking stick or quarterstaff.
She looked up to see him and Zevran exchanging smirks with one another as Zevran's shirt still dangled from his fingers. "I can elicit many different sounds from our luscious leader, I assure you, my sparkle-fingered friend. Had you come down a bit sooner, or just a bit later, you could have learned about such delightful melodies."
"Zev!" Kai practically squeaked his name while she felt her ears were burning along with her face. Maker! Sometimes she swore those two just did it to see if her head would explode from embarrassment.
They all looked at her—even Argus and the kitten—with curiosity. "Indeed, I see what you mean." Anders cocked an eyebrow and winked at her. "Alas, the dog had other ideas. I think he heard the... interesting sounds before I did. He herded me to the top of the rock and growled if I made a move to go down the path."
"So, oh magical one, what has you running to fetch us in such haste?" Zev chuckled as he slipped on his shirt before nudging Argus over so he could sit on the blankets and pull on his Antivan leather boots.
Kai sat up, turning so she could brace her back against Argus and face the mage who sat down on the soft pine needles littering the ground. She watched as Anders ran a hand through his hair, which he wore loose from the confinements of its usual ponytail. He looked younger with it down.
He also reminded her of someone, but she couldn't place who, exactly. That little gremlin in her head was jumping up and down, practically begging her to figure it out. She gave herself a mental head slap hoping to quiet the little goblin, as it was doing somersaults now, and focused on the mage who did wear a decidedly distressed look.
Anders' long fingers began plucking pine needles off the ground around him, which he used to tickle the kitten's nose while little furry paws batted playfully in retaliation. Kai nodded to Zev to pour some wine into one of their mugs for the mage; she hoped it might relax him some to get what ever it was off his chest.
Zev handed the mug to him, which Anders took with a small pained smile of thanks. Kai waited until he downed a large swallow before cocking an eyebrow at him and leaning forward. "So, what seems to be the trouble? And please don't tell me it has to do with chafing and wearing a certain outfit."
Kai's joke didn't even garner a smile. Rather, the mage looked sheepishly into the mug resting in his lap. Well, this can't be good.
"I find it is often best to just cut to the heart of things, no?" Zevran shot Kai a cheeky grin. "Is it female troubles? Is the lovely Sal proving immune to your rakish good looks and not so subtle charms?"
"I have no problems with wooing women! I..." Anders blew out a huff of air. "Right, I see what you did there. You're far too slick." He held out the mug for more wine. "No, it isn't about the blasted templar armor." He gave a shudder. "And no, it isn't about Sal. It's... it's about my phylactery."
"I thought you told us while we were at the 'Hunter's Horn' that you destroyed it?" Kai cut bread and cheese and handed them to Anders as well. She figured he might need something on his stomach to go with the wine or he might pitch forwards and crush Ser Pounce.
Anders set the mug down, took the bread and cheese, setting it on his knee before running a hand through his hair once more and giving her a embarrassed look. "No, dear lady, what I said was that I destroyed the cruor talisman they used to track me because they have my phylactery still. The talisman is a lodestone with some blood from my phylactery in a container. It makes a compass, if you will, that points those buggering templars in the direction of their prey." The mage looked a little sick. "It doesn't take a lot of blood for it to work, so they have plenty to work with in hunting down the mage in question. That mage, of course, being me in this case."
"That smacks of blood magic. It is interesting, no? That the Chantry preaches against such things, but employs something of that same nature." Zevran winked at the mage.
Kai rolled her eyes. "To err is human, to be a mage is to be a monster, and to be a hypocrite is divine, or so the Chantry would have us believe, apparently."
Anders gave a weak laugh and a smile. He then picked at the cheese and fed little pieces to the kitten who had crawled from his shirt to sit in his lap. "You might have been a little far into your cups when I explained it. Well, we all were, truth be told. Let me try and explain. The phylactery is—"
"A vial of blood taken from the magi at the Circle. That much I do know from traveling with Wynne and talking to Irving and Greagoir." Kai shrugged. "But I never had much cause to go into more detail with them. Wynne is allowed to travel where she wills by decree of both Irving and Greagoir, and through them, has the permission of the Chantry. That has not been revoked as of yet, and I don't see it happening anytime soon. I figure that with what all that is going on, Wynne has fallen through the cracks, so to speak, or they feel she's too old to worry about. Though that would be a grave mistake for anyone to make, friend or foe."
Kai took the remaining mug and held it up for Zevran to fill. "The only other mage I have spent a lot of time with is an apostate. I can safely say the Chantry and the Circle would rather try and beard the Black City than put a collar on Morrigan."
"Yes, your brother's lovely companion did strike me as an even more difficult personality than myself, shall we say." Anders flashed her a slight grin. "Well, the phylactery is a good amount of our blood mixed with lyrium, herbs, and other things only the templars and the Chantry are privy to." He gave a short bark of cynical laughter. "After all, if mages knew what it was that they used, we might be able to counter it."
The kitten, perhaps sensing Anders' discomfort, jumped up and put a paw on the man's chest with a plaintive 'meow.' Anders scooped up the kitten, cuddling Ser Pounce under his chin. "Sorry, little one, I'll be all right." He addressed Kai and Zev once more. "Anyways, they take that blood and keep it, using it as a collar and leash, and to track us should we seek the freedom due any—"
"Due any sentient being. Yes, I quite agree with you. So did Alistair Theirin. Had he been king, he would have freed the Circle and made the templars a guard force to track mages who were using magic against others or for improper reasons. And, of course, those demons or abominations that are wont to pop up from time to time. But not to cage or imprison. It is a sentiment my companions and myself share." Kai shrugged. "Well, save Wynne, perhaps. But she has more freedom than most, so I think she forgets what it is like to have someone in armor looking at you as if you might turn evil at any moment. I think she forgets what a strain that kind of scrutiny causes."
"Yes, I got the distinct impression she thinks the Circle does more good than harm. And on one level I agree, as it is a good place to learn, to refine, to gain control over what we have, and under the tutelage of more experienced magi. And then..." Anders grimaced.
"And then there are the templars and the abuses that can happen when those who have power get corrupted by it. That also goes for the mages themselves, like Uldred." Kai flashed him a sympathetic smile.
Anders pounded the ground next to his knee with his free hand, sending up a puff of dust that glittered in a dappled beam of sunshine. The scent of dust and pine wafted in the air. Pounce gave a startled mewl then sneezed. "Sorry, little one!" The mage cuddled the kitten once more and seemed to regain his calm. "Like that poor girl Drysi, the one I helped escape. Bloody bastard templar and his friend. They took their cues from Biff and company. They were some of the ones who liked to kick me in the head or ribs to wake me up, too."
He placed the kitten back down in his lap before grabbing the mug and emptying it and asking for more. Zev poured the last of the bottle into it as Anders continued. "I knew how to get to Drysi's phylactery, you see. She hadn't been through her Harrowing yet, so it was still at the tower. I picked the lock and stole it, re-locking the door behind me so they would be none the wiser about her, I hoped."
"What about your phylactery? Wasn't it in the same place as Drysi's?" Kai grabbed an apple, polished it and bit in while waiting for Anders to feel comfortable and take up his tale once more.
"Unfortunately, no. After we pass the Harrowing, our phylacteries are sent off to Denerim. During the Blight, as you will recall, Denerim was attacked by the darkspawn and the Archdemon. Thanks, also to you, there was forewarning of the event and Denerim was mostly evacuated." Anders tickled Ser Pounce's belly and she waited for him to continue at his own pace, content that he would confess what it was that he felt he needed to.
"And also thanks to you, my phylactery, along with countless other Harrowed magi's vials, were moved to a safe place away from the path of the Blight." He grimaced. "After my sixth escape attempt and my year of solitary confinement, I broke into Irving's office, and his bastard cohort Greagoir's too, and found out that the phylacteries had been moved to Amaranthine."
Kai grinned and gave him a friendly nudge with her boot. "If this is your way of asking me if I will help you track down your phylactery because it's my fault it didn't get destroyed in the attack, the answer is yes. Feel better now?"
Instead of looking relieved, Anders blushed furiously and ducked his head while concentrating on stroking the kitten who had fallen asleep in his lap.
Kai cocked an eyebrow. "Okay, so I take it that isn't what is bothering you. Care to enlighten me, Anders?"
Anders' hazel eyes locked on hers, though his skin remained darkened and he chewed his lower lip. "The templars will be coming for me. They will make other talismans and they will continue to come for me." He cupped the sleeping Ser Pounce and nuzzled the kitten's fur. "I had no right to take this little one, or to endanger other people, especially not people I have come to like so well. I—"
Kai put up a hand to stop him. "Yes, I figured they might. My scath have been keeping their ears to the ground about the Revered Witch and her minions."
"You... wait, you what?" Anders' eyes widened.
"I have been keeping a special eye on the Revered Mother, the Chantry of Ferelden, and the templars ever since our visit to the tower after we met Drysi. Greagoire, Irving, and Ser Cullen have been against Anora. They pay a heavy price for their defiance, as the Tower is now the repository for the rejects who are mostly just under-trained templars. Most seem to be nothing more than children. Some are the spoiled bastards of the nobility, like Veyryl. Basically, they're the rejects of the ones Anora does not use for her personal brute squad." Kai grinned as Anders' confused look mimicked the one on Argus' face when he was confounded.
"After meeting Drysi, and informing Iriving and Greagoir... well, let's just say that Greagoir took care of Drysi's attacker and his friend." Kai went onto explain Veyryl's untimely demise after attempting to learn how to fly, and his friend's subsequent banishment from the templars and his shunning by all there.
Anders' eyes widened. "I never knew the old goat had it in him." His eyebrows drew down in a scowl. "I suppose that spineless slug Irving disapproved. He seems to like being a Chantry dishrag."
"Actually, Irving wanted to make sure that Drysi's phylactery had been destroyed. If you hadn't, he would have. The fact that Drysi and her son are still near the lake with friends safe and sound should tell you something." Kai raised her eyebrows. "And, by the by, Irving has kept Wynne from being ordered back to the tower, and he came to our aid any time we have needed him. He has been loyal and stalwart. He has kept my secret and aids us at great personal risk to himself. Both he and Greagoir."
Anders skin flushed once more and he shrugged his shoulders. "I would apologize, but I haven't seen the side of them that you speak of."
Kai shook her head. "Has it ever occurred to you that they have managed to keep you from being executed? Six previous escape attempts? And then finally you get put in solitary confinement?" Kai rolled her eyes. "I know Irving and Greagoir, and I suspect they both worked hard to keep them from killing you outright after, say, the third attempt? What were you punished with before?"
Anders blushed harder this time. "Kitchen duties, cleaning out chamber pots, cleaning out the magic labs after the newest apprentice's lessons, and then solitary for at most a week. I—"
"You never thought that perhaps that they were trying not to punish you as the Chantry would have demanded? That solitary confinement, for longer than a week, came after your sixth attempt, surprises me. I thought they would have claimed you an abomination by the fourth and summarily had you put down like a rabid dog." Kai gave a cynical laugh. "I wonder if their troubles with the new untrained templars and rejects might not be part and parcel to do with advocating on a certain stubborn mage's behalf. Food for thought, maybe?"
"They put me in solitary for a year!" Anders' voice rose. "If it hadn't been for Mr. Wiggums, I would have gone insane!"
"And did you ever think, young man, that it was neither Irving nor Greagoir's idea?" Wynne's acerbic tone broke in as the elder mage appeared from around the rock. "Think, young man, use the brains the Maker gave you for something other than keeping your ears from clanking together. Do try, at any rate." They all turned to see Wynne with her arms crossed over her chest. "I happened to have a long talk with Irving about you while we were at the tower looking into the whole affair. Irving is mightily worried over you. He told me that he would not have put you in solitary confinement but for Anora and the Revered Mother's threats towards the tower."
Wynne cocked an eyebrow at Anders. "I have it on good authority that Anora and the Revered Mother were calling for you to either be executed or made tranquil, despite passing your Harrowing. Anora has been making motions of having Irving and Greagoir replaced with people more suitable to the positions. They begged and pleaded on your behalf. In other words—"
"In other words, having those that might be more in line with Anora and the Revered Mother's agendas." Anders looked chagrined. "Yes, I see. They were trying to keep the rest of the tower safe, as well as myself."
"Indeed. So, you can see, young man, that your perceptions may not be exactly correct. And we are well aware of others coming for you. Irving mentioned a certain Rylock by name, the personal templar to her Reverence, and one who harbors an apparently large amount of hatred for you." Wynne rocked on her heels.
"Rylock? Bloody hell! She would send that bitch." Kai and the rest looked intently at the young mage, who shrugged when he noticed their looks. "Rylock was the one, along with her bully boys, to come and take my best friend Karl from the Circle in Ferelden and send him to Kirkwall. Karl was another thorn in the Revered Mother's side, writing manifestos about mage freedom." Anders focused on petting the kitten, stroking soft fur, the memory obviously painful for him. "I told her off as they were taking him away, and embarrassed her in front of her men. Besides the fact that she takes her cues from the old dingbat, thinking for oneself and being a templar don't seem to go hand in hand."
"Yes, well, you may wish to start emulating that, young man." Wynne gave Anders a cheeky grin. "Your armor was just delivered to our rooms. I came out here to let you all know."
Anders groaned loudly and put his face in his hands. "Great, just sodding great! I feel the hives forming already!"
Zev got to his feet and clapped a hand on the mage's shoulder. "Come, my sparkle-fingered friend, the sooner we see Bhelen, the sooner we have you out of that armor, no?" Zev winked. "And who knows, maybe the delightful and deadly Sal will soften and coat you in salve. Women do love a man in distress."
Anders only groaned louder while they gathered the blanket and the remains of the picnic and headed towards the gates in cheerful laughter.